


Love your friends, die laughing.

by rarepairqueen



Category: Haikyuu!!, Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Both established and developing relationships, Crossover, First Kiss, General lunacy, Implied Sexual Content, Multi, Prank Wars, Sharing a Bed, Teenage boys being dumb and overcompetitive, There's a wet tshirt contest at some point, Underage Drinking, Water Balloon Fights
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-16
Updated: 2016-10-31
Packaged: 2018-07-24 10:13:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 70,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7504402
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rarepairqueen/pseuds/rarepairqueen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>'It wasn't that Daichi doubted Hinata's ability to make friends - in fact it was the opposite - but he'd had enough of socialising with the likes of Kuroo and Bokuto and he didn't want to meet anymore captains of anymore teams.'</p>
<p>Aka: The Generation of Miracles meet the Karasuno volleyball club during the Nekoma training camp and chaos ensues.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Kidnapped Crow

**Author's Note:**

> So, I figured I'd ease myself into the Haikyuu!! fandom by writing a crossover and I'd consider it a success to be quite honest.
> 
> Few things to clarify;  
> \- I'm primarily following the events of the Haikyuu!! anime (I have not read the manga yet).  
> \- Characterisation is a thing I tend to struggle with so if you notice something's off then please PLEASE let me know how to fix it! Pointing it out is great but giving me an idea of how to improve is even more helpful~  
> \- Here's a [Spotify playlist](https://open.spotify.com/user/stardustz6/playlist/0CRBpV9SbNUldYyyTie4qh) of all the songs I listened to whilst writing this fic (in no particular order)
> 
> With all that in mind, I hope you enjoy~

Chapter One

Kidnapped Crow

Hinata very much approved of the plan to chill out on the beach, the training camp was a bit on the brutal side with the likes of Nekoma and Fukurodani there but it was all to make Karasuno stronger so he didn't mind at all. Daichi had very sternly made the beach day a 'team only' affair so that they could also talk through some new play strategies without their rivals overhearing. It was a very chilled out atmosphere - or as chilled out as it could be with Tanaka and Nishinoya around.

The beach was fairly quiet for the height of summer vacation, there were a few other groups of people around but they were keeping to themselves much like the volleyball team were. Kageyama had made it a point to tell Hinata he was going to sleep - in other words 'wake only if the beach was on fire' - so the smaller boy was a little bored. Tsukishima was in an equally antisocial mood but that was nothing new, Yamaguchi just sat with him under the shade of the parasol and kept a quiet conversation going as the rest of the team were much more energetic. Ennoshita had given up trying to contain Tanaka and Noya's antics and just decided to watch them trying to convince Asahi to go swimming, the ace wasn't totally up for it but neither Suga or Daichi seemed to want to intervene.

"Hinata?"

The first year's head whipped up from where he had been resting it on his knees. "Y-Yes Kiyoko-senpai?"

The girl smiled, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear as she glanced at the over-excited second years. "Can you go and fill the water bottles up at the fountain? I'd ask Tanaka-san but he seems busy."

Hinata followed her gaze to see that Noya had climbed onto Asahi's back and Tanaka was now tugging the ace towards the ocean. He nodded, accepting the basket that held several drinks bottles. They weren't intending to practice but it was a cheaper alternative to buying canned drinks from the street vendor.

The water fountain was next to the restrooms, it was only about a five minute walk from where the team was lazing around but it was far enough for him to lose sight of the others. He didn't think much of the rowdy group of teenagers nearby, they seemed more interested in whatever antics they were involved in to pay attention to him.

As he rounded the corner he was reminded of why he was somewhat so fearful of restrooms. He froze in his tracks as he regarded the three males in front of him, they were easily the same height as Tsukishima if not taller and they were _bigger_ , or at least two of them were, the one with short blond hair was slimmer and seemed a lot less intimidating at first but he wasn't exactly lacking muscle mass either. They were all filling up empty water bottles when he let out a small yelp of surprise and dropped the basket.

"Huh?" One of them turned his head, the tanned teen regarded Hinata with a bored but curious expression as he scrambled to collect up the bottles that had spilled out onto the sun-baked concrete.

Hinata made more panicked noises before a cheerful voice put him a little at ease. He looked up and found the blond teen smiling at him, earring flashing in the sunlight as he crouched down to help him put all the bottles back in the basket.

"Do you want some help?" He asked, gesturing to the bottles. "We've finished with the fountain."

Hinata nodded dumbly. They had to be third years or maybe even college students with their height and presences. He followed the other male's lead as the other two shared an amused glance.

"Oi Kise, we'll head back yeah?" The red-head replied, nudging the bulkier of the two of them in the ribs. "C'mon Aho."

Kise smiled and nodded, turning his attention back to Hinata with a smile. "So, you here on vacation?"

"Y-Yes!" Hinata replied quickly, still a little tense at being around this older student.

Kise chuckled slightly. "With friends or--"

"My volleyball club!"

There was a spark in the blond's eye as he handed back the full water bottles. "Volleyball eh? Funny, all my friends and I play basketball..."

"R-Really? Are you guys in college together?!"

"Eh? No...we're freshmen in high school." The other rubbed the back of his head as he smiled, slightly amused that this boy thought he was a college student.

"No way! You're all so tall..." Hinata pouted slightly. "Are you that good?"

His gentle smile turned into a smirk. "Well. I won't blame you for not knowing. We are somewhat of a big deal...hey do you wanna come and meet them?”

Hinata nodded eagerly. "I'm Hinata Shoyo! First year of Karasuno high school."

"Kise Ryouta, first year of Kaijo and the ace of their basketball team." Kise declared, striking a pose that made Hinata's jaw hang in awe.

"A-Ace?"

"Oh those two guys who were here? They were aces too, different teams though." Kise shrugged, beckoning Hinata to follow him. "Come on, I'll introduce you to everyone!"

Hinata felt his stomach twist as he realised that he was about to meet two more first year aces. They may not play the same sport as him but they _had_ to be talented if they were already comfortable being called the ace of their teams barely a few months into their first year. He was led to the same rowdy group he had overheard on his way to the fountain, the first thing he noted about all of them was the array of hair colours, he was used to being the only one on the team who had an outrageous hair colour.

"Kise, who's that?" Someone asked, Hinata glanced in the direction of the voice and locked eyes with a somewhat disgruntled teen with green hair.

"This is Hinata everyone~" Kise declared, placing a hand on Hinata's scrawny shoulder. "Don't mind Midorimacchi, he's always sulking."

"Am not." Midorima huffed, the smaller boy beside him laughed and introduced himself as the point guard of the same team that Midorima was on.

"Point guard..." Hinata repeated, he had no idea what that was.

"Yeah!" Takao nodded. "Kasa's a point guard too."

Hinata followed the other's finger as he pointed across the group at a shirtless guy who seemed half asleep. He was told that the other two guys he had met briefly were called Kagami and Aomine, both rivals but also friends. Kise excitedly listed off the names of everyone else and Hinata's head began to hurt as names of both players and teams were thrown at him.

"He looks like he's gonna vomit." A soft voice interrupted, Hinata looked for the source of the voice and came fact to face with a girlish smile. "I remember when Tetsu-kun had that same expression." She giggled.

"I-uh-who?" Hinata's eyes widened as he took in yet another vibrant hair colour and then the sight of the girl's revealing clothing.

"Kurokocchi's gone to get ice cream with Murasakibaracchi." Kise shrugged as if Hinata had any idea who they were. "Oh this is Momoicchi."

Hinata had the grace to avert his gaze from the tight clothing the girl wore, thinking that his captain would have his head if he knew what was happening. The thought of his captain alone made him remember that he was supposed to be returning with the water for Kiyoko. Kise's hand was still on his shoulder as he babbled on about how they were all friends from middle school who met up that summer to see how they were all getting on at their high schools.

"So you play volleyball?" Kasamatsu abruptly asked, spooking Hinata slightly as he opened one eye to glare at him.

"Y-Yes!"

The teen was quiet for a few moments, it struck Hinata that he had this presence about him that reminded him a lot of Asahi. "...Kise, has it occurred to you that he was getting water for his team and you basically abducted him?"

"Eh? But senpai he was asking about me being an ace!" Kise protested, releasing Hinata's shoulder as Momoi and Takao laughed. The other's gathered around seemed friendly enough and he felt his nerves easing.

"N-No it's okay!" Hinata interrupted, gaining everyone's attention. "We're not doing anything important really, well Kiyoko-senpai might be concerned and she'll probably tell the captain and he might send Suga-senpai or someone to come and find me..."

"Ooh I wanna meet this volleyball team." Aomine - the tanned teen who had spooked Hinata earlier - mused, a smirk spreading across his face.

"You don't even know how to play volleyball Dai-chan!" Momoi sighed. "Besides, we can't just leave everything here! Tetsu-kun and Mura-kun will be back soon anyway and then we're meeting Riko-chan and Furihata-kun at that sushi restaurant."

It seemed that the group were friendly enough, they reminded Hinata of Nekoma to a degree. He listened to their light-hearted bickering for a while before an all-too-familiar voice called out to him.

"Oi Hinata!" Kageyama wasn't that far away but he certainly wasn't coming any closer than necessary. "The hell are you doing? You've gotten Kiyoko and Yachi worried!"

Hinata waved to him and beckoned him over. Kageyama wasn't best pleased about being woken up by Yachi shaking him and babbling out how Hinata had gone missing. As usual, his senpais hadn't been too concerned and just sent him to see if Hinata had gotten himself into a terrifying bathroom situation again.

"Who are these people?" He grumbled as he regarded the boys that Hinata seemed to have befriended.

"Basketball players!"

Kageyama resisted the urge to sigh. "So you're not being kidnapped by either Bokuto or the Yakuza? Good. I'm going back to the guys."

"Wait Kageyama--"

"What?"

"We should invite these guys to hang out with us! I think it would be cool."

Kageyama gave the group a once over, he wasn't sure what to think of them in all honesty, they seemed like they'd bring all sorts of chaos, yet he had met so many elite players that it didn't really phase him.

"Whatever. You can explain it to the captain. I'm going back to sleep."

As soon as he was out of earshot, Aomine chuckled and glanced at Midorima. "He reminds me of someone...can't think who."

"Aomine I will not hesitate to throw this bucket at you." Midorima stated.

"You mean a brat?" Kasamatsu sighed. "Kid needs a kick up the ass."

"Who was he?" Kise asked, still at ease despite Kageyama's dismissiveness.

"Oh! That was Kageyama, he's...uh..my teammate. He's kind of a big deal but he's an ass sometimes...but the rest of the team isn't like that honestly!"

He babbled out that he should get going and that it would be cool if they came over to hang out. Kise and Momoi smiled and immediately took him up on the offer, Takao joining the fray and pounced on Hinata quickly. He had to admit, these basketball players were certainly lively and he liked it.

 

* * *

 

 

When Daichi heard that Hinata had met some other students, he got a slightly uneasy feeling. It wasn't that he doubted Hinata's ability to make friends - in fact it was the opposite - but he'd had enough of socialising with the likes of Kuroo and Bokuto and he didn't want to meet any more captains of any more teams.

So when Hinata reappeared with a small following of basketball players, Daichi had to take a moment to calm himself. Suga was already on top of everything, he smiled and greeted the unlikely bunch of friends, effectively taking charge of introductions. Daichi couldn't help but feel a little helpless as he watched his co-captain take charge of meeting and greeting the new faces. It became apparent that there was only one third year amongst them and he was not particularly happy about his kouhai dragging him away from his relaxation.

"I hope Hinata didn't cause any trouble." Daichi found himself apologising to Kasamatsu. He felt a small sense of apprehension as he shook the other's hand, but with a heavy sigh and a slight chuckle the tension eased.

"I should be the one apologising to you. Ryouta pretty much kidnapped him after Kagami and Aomine scared him half to death."

Daichi had to laugh, attracting Suga's attention in the process before beginning to exchange stories with Kasamatsu regarding their teams. The arrival of the basketball players had certainly caught everyone's attention, only a few of them had actually come over but it was enough to rile up Kageyama. He scowled slightly as Hinata excitedly talked with Kise, he seemed entranced by the fact a first year was the ace of his team.

"Jealous much King?" Tsukishima remarked.

"Shut up." Kageyama grumbled.

"You're brooding again, I can practically feel the vibes rolling off you."

Kageyama shoved Tsukishima slightly, just a warning to knock it off before he stood up and made his way over to see what was so interesting that Hinata was practically yelling. Noya and Takao were almost too much to handle, the second year making a point to signal Tanaka over from where he had been lowkey flirting with Kiyoko and definitely not letting any of these first years near her - even if Kiyoko kept assuring him that she was totally fine sat next to Suga. Kagami and Aomine had been dragged into Hinata and Kise's debate about whether volleyball or basketball was more entertaining to watch, Takao raised an eyebrow as he picked up on Kageyama lurking behind Hinata and practically glaring daggers at Kise who just ignored him.

"Sup?" He asked, spooking Kageyama slightly.

"Nothing." The other answered quickly, not quite sure how to handle being caught out.

The conversation was cut short by Momoi yelling for Aomine to get back to the group because Kuroko and Murasakibara had returned and they weren't waiting around for the others. Her arrival certainly turned a few heads. Kise laughed when Tanaka and Noya seemed awestruck before making a rather big deal of not looking at the girl's cleavage that was on show in her bikini.

"Kiyoko-senpai would look cute in a two piece." Tanaka murmured to the other second year as Aomine got dragged away by the pink-haired girl.

Noya nodded in agreement before they were both spooked by Ennoshita clearing his throat behind them. Both of them startling so much made Suga laugh. The co-captain watched as Momoi rounded up the basketball players, vaguely wondering if it would be worth asking them to hang out at their training camp. He managed to tug Daichi aside and run the idea by both him and Kiyoko who had been watching the excited conversations from afar. They'd have to clear it with coach Ukai but there was definitely a murmured agreement that inviting them to just watch the next day's matches would be nice.

It wasn't totally clear just who was in charge of the other group, but it was quickly revealed that the one captain that didn't come with them to meet Karasuno was more or less the person to speak to along with Momoi. It fell to Suga and Kiyoko to actually go and ask as Daichi needed to try and corral Karasuno into packing up to head back to the high school. Momoi was more than happy to lead them back to their group, Aomine was a little irritated about being dragged away from talking to Hinata but as the group was leaving he went along with it. Kiyoko felt more at ease knowing that there were two female managers within this group and she entertained the idea of asking Momoi about her experiences with the miracles.

Akashi was dozing when Kise woke him up with the near-fatal act of tickling him. Suga instantly got this vibe from the small captain that he was not to be messed with as he glared at Kise.

"Who are you?" Akashi asked, voice calm despite the clear irritation rolling off him. Kiyoko subconsciously stepped behind Suga as Akashi's gaze flickered over them.

"Hi uh, we're from the volleyball club that your friends just met. I believe you met Hinata earlier?" Suga smiled, he reminded himself that he was two years older than this particular captain and in theory should be immune to his vibes.

"Oh yes, the kid Ryouta kidnapped and the other boy who reeked of anger issues." Akashi remarked.

"Like Aka-chin is one to talk about anger issues." Murasakibara hummed, being led down on a blanket did little to hide his height and Suga had to rub his eyes just to clarify that he was looking at a first year and not a giant.

"Hush." Akashi sighed, stifling a yawn as he glanced up at Suga and Kiyoko. "So I gather that the others came over and bothered your team?"

"No it's fine! Actually that's why we're here." Suga smiled again. "I'm Sugawara and I'm the vice-captain. Kiyoko-san here is our manager and we were wondering if you all wanted to come and watch our training camp tomorrow? We heard you were here on vacation and a few of our teammates seemed to have already made friends with yours."

Akashi looked to Midorima with a small smile. "What do you think?"

Before Midorima could properly reply, Takao ran up behind where he was sat and hugged the ace's neck, draping himself over Midorima's shoulders as he laughed. "C'mon Shin-chan~ It'll be fun." He sighed into the other's ear.

Akashi raised an eyebrow, knowing full well what was about to happen. A small smile graced Midorima's face as he ruffled Takao's hair. "I don't have any objections."

After a few more murmured comments were thrown back and forth between the group, Akashi nodded. "Sure. We're staying at a hotel not too far from here so you'll have to give us an address." He sighed. "Or better yet get someone's phone number and relay the details to them."

Momoi quickly jumped at the chance and exchanged details with Kiyoko, Suga had to explain that this training camp had other teams at it so they'd end up meeting a lot more people including their coaches. Akashi didn't seem to mind, he still seemed slightly drowsy. With a few other details being exchanged, Suga and Kiyoko said goodbye and returned in time to help Daichi motivate the others into packing up to head back to the camp.

After eating, the third years managed to get both coach Ukai and Takeda-sensei to agree to talk about inviting their new acquaintances to the next day's practice. There was some reluctance on the account that Karasuno were getting beaten everyday but at the same time the idea of introducing basketball players to volleyball was an entertaining one. Ukai said he'd get the other coaches to agree and maybe lengthen their stay if Nekoma allowed them to stay in the school.

The day's events were certainly the hot topics as they settled down to sleep, Suga had asked Kiyoko to text Momoi all the details and what time they could show up. It was planned so that they'd have morning practice as normal but the afternoons might get a little disrupted as a result of their arrival. Daichi had somewhat begrudgingly told Kuroo and Bokuto about it all and to no-one surprise they were fairly excited to meet these aces.

Hinata wouldn't shut up about how cool Kise was, Kageyama wanted to smother him with a pillow but that would mean getting up and also Tanaka was on his other side so he'd have to deal with a lecture. Noya was equally in high spirits at meeting them and kept going on about how Kasamatsu was quite short in comparison to some of the others but he was also the captain so "that has to mean something right?"

Daichi rubbed his forehead as Asahi laughed slightly, the one bonus of this was that it would give them something to think about other than their loss in the spring. Maybe they'd even learn something from these basketball players.

"Alright shut up and go to sleep." Daichi called as Suga switched off the lights. "We're still here to train remember."

There were a few grumbles but the rest of the boys settled down at their captain's order. Suga slipped into his futon next to Daichi's and chuckled slightly. "You're such a dad, we should call you dadchi."

Asahi tried to hide his laughter as Daichi groaned. "Sugawara...please..."

The co-captain chuckled in the dark which in turn set off Noya because he wanted to know what was so funny. Daichi rolled over and made to jab Suga's side, fingers brushed against soft skin and intertwined with other fingers. The captain's breathing hitched as his hand was squeezed by his best friend's and then let go quickly. He withdrew his hand and swallowed, trying to make sense of what had just happened as the other called for quiet again from their worked up kouhais. Sure enough, after a few more hushed comments the sound of heavy breathing replaced the excited giggles and peace fell on the dark room.

Daichi sighed in relief as he heard no more chattering from the younger boys, pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried to get comfortable. The unfamiliar environment wasn't making it easy for him, Nekoma were staying next door and he was pretty sure someone was still awake and talking _loudly_ about something, aside from that he wasn't used to the sounds of the building settling around him or the not-too-distant city buzz coming through partly open windows.

And then there were his own thoughts, he wasn't sure what to make of those basketball players, he wasn't sure what to make of Kuroo and Bokuto, he wasn't sure how to get Karasuno to improve before the next tournament. He also wasn't sure why he was hung up on the tender interaction with Suga, but he shoved that thought to the back of his mind as he rolled over and buried his face in his pillow. He hoped the next day's practice would be kinder to them.


	2. First seeds of Friendship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You need to chill out more."
> 
> "Like you hitting Aomine in the face?" Akashi challenged.
> 
> "Accident." Kuroo shrugged. "Plus he aimed for me first."

Chapter Two

First seeds of friendship

  
As predicted, morning practice for Karasuno went just as well as all the other practice matches had gone. Once they had finished their punishing lap of dives and the gruelling running uphill they were all ready to nap the afternoon away. Kiyoko smiled as she received a text from Momoi declaring they were just a few minutes away and told the others to rest up until they arrived. The team felt a little disheartened at all their losses and seeing their new friends was bound to cheer them up.

They heard the others before they saw them, mainly Kise calling and waving before Kasamatsu sighed for him to be a little quieter. The noise attracted Kuroo and Bokuto out of curiosity and the rest of afternoon practice for the three volleyball teams was put on hold.

"So you're an ace?" Kuroo asked, peering through his fringe at Aomine after the briefest of introductions had been gotten out of the way. Not that he needed to be told who Hinata had been babbling on about all morning, the hair colours were enough to clue him in on it all.

"What of it?" Aomine grunted, raising an eyebrow at the third year who was ever-so-slightly shorter than him.

"Not normal for first years to be aces that's all. I guess basketball is different to volleyball."

Bokuto raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms across his chest. "We heard from Daichi that you're supposedly miracles of sorts? Bet you we can take you on."

Momoi sighed as Aomine smirked at the challenge. "Oh really? Oi Bakagami get your butt over here, they're challenging us to a game!"

"You do realise these two are both captains and third years?" Another voice interrupted, a shorter boy stepped out of the gym and raised an eyebrow. "Bokuto-san we're meant to be playing a match soon."

"Hm? Come on _Akaaaaashi_ ," Bokuto complained, stretching out his co-captain's name as was the norm when he was pining for something. "these are the basketball guys that Daichi was on about this morning. Surely we can spare an afternoon to--"

"Basketball? You've never played." Akaashi replied, folding his arms loosely as he held a water bottle in his hand. "Unless you're assuming they'll play volleyball."

"Hell yeah we can play volleyball, it can't be that hard. Besides, the only one who can beat me is me--"

"Are you still using that line Aho?" Kagami's voice cut into the conversation. "And what are you dragging us into now?"

That was how afternoon practice got abandoned in favour of watching so-say top tier high school basketball players attempt to play volleyball. The basic rules were explained to those who volunteered - or were pressured into it - and Noya volunteered to play libero on their side on the account that they wouldn't know how to dive safely. Karasuno let them borrow some knee and elbow pads in the name of safety and a crash course in serving was delivered by Suga before the scraped together team took up their positions. Kuroko smiled to himself as he readied his phone to film the train wreck that was about to occur. Aomine demanded to serve first, tugging slightly on the knee pads he wasn't used to wearing.

"If you hit me in the head then I _will_ kick you into next week." Kasamatsu growled from near the net, he only went along with this chaos because Kise wanted to play, he had no idea why he agreed to potentially make a fool of himself in front of everyone but there was little he could say now to get out of it.

Akaashi smirked slightly from the other side of the net, he glanced at Bokuto and nodded. Aomine grunted and spun the ball in his hands, it was smaller and slightly heavier than a basketball but he figured that all he had to do was aim for Kuroo's head on the other side of the net. He vaguely followed Suga's instructions on serving, smacking the ball as hard as he could so it soared over the net at a frightening speed. Kuroo raised an eyebrow as it shot throw the air towards him, for a second Aomine thought he was going to let it hit him before the captain moved to the side and let the ball slam into the back wall.

"You idiot!" Kasamatsu sighed as the Ennoshita's whistle blasted and the regulars gained a point. "Out of bounds knucklehead."

"Quit it." Noya sighed, ignoring the third year's half-hearted glare. "Just be ready for Bokuto's serve. Kasamatsu-senpai you're currently our setter."

"Wait what does that--"

Bokuto didn't bother to wait, sending the ball back over at an equally terrifying speed, Noya dove down and batted the ball up in Kasamatsu's direction. The third year panicked but managed to sloppily hit the ball into the air where Kagami charged forward and slammed it across the net. Daichi received it and as soon as Kagami had landed on the floor the ball was back on their side. Kise managed to collide with Takao whilst Noya scooped up the ball and sent it back to Aomine to bat it over.

It wasn't long before someone got hit in the face. Kuroo hadn't quite forgiven Aomine for aiming at him so when the opportunity to catch Touou's ace off guard was presented, well he wasn't about to let it pass. Akaashi tossed to him and he wasn't merciful in the slightest as he sent the ball straight at Aomine's face. Unlike the captain, Aomine's reflexes were a tad off, resulting in him collecting the ball with his cheek.

"That was a little excessive Kuroo-san." Akaashi sighed as play was suspended so both Momoi and Kiyoko could check Aomine's face was okay.

"I know, I know." Kuroo replied, ducking under the net to go and apologise. Aomine didn't seem too put out about it as he held a cold towel to his cheek. "Sorry about that." He smiled. "Didn't mean to quite catch you so hard."

"'t's okay." Aomine murmured, not seeing the sense in getting annoyed at the third year who reminded him so much of his captain. "But I guess someone else will have to sub in."

Kuroo glanced over at the sidelines where the other basketball players were congregating, for obvious reasons a lot of them preferred to stay out of this brutal game. A decision was made eventually and Kuroo's gaze met Himuro's, the shooter's poker face gave nothing away as he made his way down to the court, Murasakibara's gaze following him as he gave Kuroo a side glance and fist bumped Kagami. Aomine smirked slightly as Kuroo raised an eyebrow at the other's silence but said nothing, the miracle left the court and sat next to Sakurai, letting his teammate tenderly check the swelling on his cheek as play resumed.

Play restarted with Kise attempting to serve, he hit Kagami in the back of the head before getting another chance, hitting it cleanly over and straight into Yaku's possession. If the regulars were going easy on them then none of them realised it. Kasamatsu grunted as he used his chest to receive a spike from Bokuto, Himuro wasted no time getting stuck in as he returned the favour to Kuroo with Noya's assistance.

For a team of novices, they weren't doing too badly. Their basketball training did somewhat carry over to this new sport even if the rules and positions were different. Even so, they were getting thrashed by more than ten points. The match ended with several new bruises, Kise complaining that his hands hurt and Kagami remarking about how he hadn't seen his brother so fired up about something. Himuro laughed it off, playfully shoving Kagami before a familiar hand on his head made him pause. He smiled up at his boyfriend as Kuroo and Yaku approached them and started asking if he was the captain of his name given how much weight he carried in his actions.

The girls all despaired at how quickly the two groups meeting turned into a contest but confessed it wasn't surprising really. Momoi skipped off to ask Akashi what he thought of the miracles' performance and no doubt spy on how Aomine and Sakurai were interacting on their first trip away from their captain, leaving Riko to try and liaise with Kiyoko and Yachi regarding what to do now that the boys had proved their points.

After a bit of conferring, it was agreed that 'the basketball boys' - as Bokuto had coined them - could join them for their end of training camp BBQ the following day and possibly even hang out afterwards. There was no rush for Karasuno to head home as soon as camp ended and Nekoma were more than happy to house everyone for another week or two as long as nothing got broken and the other sports clubs were left to train. Of course it all depended on how well everyone mixed. There were a few clashes in personality here and there but for the most part, everyone seemed tolerant of each other. With afternoon practice well and truly abandoned, everyone ended up outside on the grassy hill enjoying the sunshine and getting to know each other.

Hinata stole the opportunity to question Kise and Kagami about how they became aces in their first years, the blond was all too eager to indulge the younger boy in Kaijo's antics and effectively ignored any remarks from Kagami about the first practice match between them. Aomine wasn't the only one whose ace status at such an early age was called into question by the volleyball captains, Bokuto and Kuroo were very curious as to how Akashi was both the ace and the captain of Rakuzan, the red head was more awake than when Suga had met him the previous day and deflected most of their attempts to irritate him.

"I am simply the best equipped for the job." He smirked as Kuroo exchanged a glance with Daichi, the captains had gravitated towards each other and Kasamatsu was trying not to laugh at the third years who were trying to unravel the enigma that was Akashi Seijuurou. "After all, I have never failed."

"Pretty sure Ryouta would say otherwise." Kasamatsu remarked, smirking slightly when Akashi glared at him.

"Man you guys are dramatic." Kuroo puffed, leaning back on the grass and flicking his fringe out of his eyes. "You need to chill out more."

"Like you hitting Aomine in the face?" Akashi challenged.

"Accident." Kuroo shrugged. "Plus he aimed for me first."

"Now now children." Daichi rolled his eyes.

"Yes dad." Bokuto teased. "Wait so if you're the dad then does that make Suga the mom?"

"Does that mean Yaku is the mom of Nekoma?" Kuroo hummed.

Daichi's face flushed red as he thought about him and Suga being the parents of their flock of crows, it was joked about frequently but that didn't make it any easier to stop getting flustered about it.

Bokuto laughed as he sat up and cupped his hands over his mouth, "Oi Akaaaashi! Would you say you're the mom of our--"

A well-aimed empty water bottle connecting with the ace's chest answered that question. The co-captain sighed slightly before turning back to Takao and Furihata with a hint of a smile.

"Bokuto-san is very loud as you've heard." He stated.

"You think _he's_ loud?" Takao clarified. "Kagami and Aomine put together are twice as bad." The two aces in question were currently arguing with Midorima after the classic 'three-pointers are always better' remark was made. Akaashi raised an eyebrow.

"At least they're not on the same team." Furihata laughed. "I think coach would've killed them by now."

"So, Akaashi, I guess you're the one who's kind of in charge of your team?" Takao continued, already having picked up on the fact that whilst Bokuto was captain, it was really Akaashi who pulled the strings.

"You could say that." Akaashi hummed. "Bokuto-san has mood swings and it's up to the rest of us to carry him. But it's a small price to pay when he has as much fun as he does. He is a talented player and I--we do everything we can to support him as our ace."

Furihata was no stranger to slip ups in speech, especially regarding certain red-head, so he easily picked up on the other's self-correction. "You're close to him right Akaashi-senpai?"

The second year tilted his head slightly, not quite looking down on the first year but trying to size up what the brunet was getting at. Takao raised an eyebrow when the co-captain didn't reply straight away.

"I support him like the rest of the team does, his mood-swings are just an added asset to our style. It makes us unpredictable." Akaashi replied, shoving his hands in his jacket pockets, his tone hadn't changed but there was a slightly rosy tint to his cheeks.

Takao and Furihata exchanged a glance but dropped the subject. There was no agenda for that evening it seemed, at least not as far as the boys were concerned. The girls were resting under a tree away from the chaos of all the teams mixing together, Sakurai was sticking close to Momoi in this unfamiliar environment, slightly apprehensive about all the large third years he was being surrounded by. Joining the girls were Yamaguchi and Tsukishima, neither particularly wanted to get involved in the loud conversation and had sought refuge with the managers. Sakurai found Yamaguchi easy to talk to, both of them trading stories of how they've dealt with intimidating opponents and team mates alike, much to Momoi's amusement.

"Yeah Ryou is like a delicate flower most of the time, but when this guy goes into clutch time you better watch out." Momoi remarked, poking Sakurai's cheek. "He even scared our captain at first."

"N-No it wasn't like that!" Sakurai protested, Momoi giggled as he got more flustered. Yamaguchi and Yachi exchanged a glance as Sakurai tried to wave his manager off. Tsukishima bluntly ignored the conversation and continued watching Kageyama attempt to engage Kasamatsu in a discussion about controlling someone hyperactive like Kise.

"You certainly caught Dai-chan's attention." Momoi continued. "I saw you checking his face earlier after he got that ball to the face."

"N-No...I just wanted to make sure he was okay! There was nothing to it!" Sakurai's face was flushed as Yamaguchi chuckled slightly.

Kiyoko and Yachi exchanged a look as Riko tried to hide her giggling at how blunt the other was being. "Nee~ Ryou you haven't noticed?" Momoi cooed.

"Noticed what?"

"He totally has a soft spot for you!"

Sakurai's eyes widened as he shook his head. The interrogation was cut short by Noya bounding up the hill to ask Kiyoko if she had any suggestions for what to do that evening as Suga and Yaku were trying to organise something. The quiet manger shook her head but told him to tell Suga that she had no preference as long as it didn't get out of hand. Noya cast a glance to the first years before nodding and making his way back to Suga, dropping of the message before going off in search of Tanaka.

Suga and Yaku were trying to think of something to do that evening so that the groups could all mix better without having to spend money, Murasakibara seemed disinterested as Himuro and Midorima tried to suggest ideas to the others. The obvious idea was to hit the local beach again but that meant an hour of walking and no-one really seemed to want to walk anywhere after practice, likewise they couldn't all cram into a bus. Another idea was to simply head back into the building and hang out in their makeshift dorms but that seemed too boring.

"How far away are you staying?" Suga asked Midorima as Yaku excused himself from the conversation to tell Lev that Kuroko was not as passive as Kenma so picking him up was a _bad_ idea.

"About a twenty-minute walk." Midorima replied.

"I'm sure Kuroo could pull some strings and get a room set aside for you here if you want." Suga hummed, glancing over at Asahi who was trying to calm Hinata down with little success, Noya and Tanaka were making it worse to a degree and Kise just kept egging him on.

"There is no need for that Sugawara-senpai--" Midorima started before Himuro jumped in.

"--that's a great idea! It would mean we could hang out some more." The second year declared, smiling at Midorima. The sudden willingness to hang out with these new 'friends' of theirs didn't quite make sense to Midorima but he wasn't going to argue in that moment.

Suga smiled. "Well that still doesn't solve tonight's issue. And you won’t be able to stay until after practice tomorrow as we still have another day of training."

Yaku returned with Lev in tow in an effort to keep the first year out of trouble. The idea of the miracles and their friends staying for a few days after the training camp ended was pitched to him, it only took him a single glance over the mingling students to agree to it.

"I'll talk to Kuroo later, we'll talk to the coaches and sort something out for after the BBQ tomorrow for you guys." He declared.

Suga rolled his eyes slightly as the matter of what to do _then_ was still an issue. In the end they settled for sending someone to the local convenience store for drinks and then just hanging out on the grassy hill by the gymnasium. Someone managed to convince all the small groups to mix together, no-one had no issues effectively sitting in each other's laps as the group sat around the bags containing the drinks Yaku had bought for them.

For the most part it was a quiet affair. Aomine and Kuroo had set aside their slight rivalry as the scheming captain let his setter sit in his lap, totally absorbed in the games console in his hands. There was idle chit-chat amongst them all as they all slowly got to know one another, the sun started sinking in the sky as laughter rang out at something Kise said.

Hinata was in awe at Murasakibara's height and kept asking how he was taller than Lev and not even half Russian. The Yosen ace rolled his eyes as he lay with his head in Himuro's lap, he didn't _dislike_ Hinata but the other first year reminded him of a small dog that wouldn't stop yapping. Himuro chuckled as he ran a hand through the lilac strands and tried to steer the conversation away from his team-mate's height.

"So whilst we managed to somewhat play decently against you guys today, none of us had a clue what positions there are." Himuro remarked, catching Kageyama's eye briefly before fixing his gaze on Suga. "Care to give us an idiot's guide to volleyball?"

"Where do you want to start?" The co-captain replied with a smile, leaning back on his hands and bumping his shoulder against Daichi's.

"What's a setter?" Kasamatsu asked, picking at the grass in front of him. "I got told I was the setter at one point."

"We set up play for the attacking players." Suga explained. "After the ball is received, the setter will identify which attacker is free and toss the ball to them."

"Basically like a point guard." Akashi summarised. "So both you and I would be opposing setters."

"Yes, I don't think you have a position like libero though." Suga continued. "They're not allowed to attack directly, they're purely defence players."

"Which is what makes them such lunatics when it comes to diving I'm guessing?" Midorima asked, adjusting his glasses.

Noya laughed, nudging Yaku in the side and making him crack up slightly. "Lunatics, really?"

Takao giggled and nudged Midorima. "It's not polite to call them lunatics Shin-chan."

"Hey you don't know anything being a libero." Bokuto protested, gaining a slightly pained look from Akaashi. "I'd like to see you dive on the floor in the height of a match _and_ hit the ball in the correct direction."

Midorima opened his mouth to protest but thought better of it, the captain reminded him a _lot_ of Aomine and already knew that arguing with him wouldn't get him very far. Soon enough the conversation got turned around when someone asked what the deal was concerning the 'Generation of Miracles'.

"Not this again." Momoi sighed, flopping back on the grass as Akashi and Aomine traded smiles. "Every time they open their dumbass mouths..."

"Yeah! You said you guys were a big deal when I met you Kise." Hinata butted in, ignoring the slight grumble from Kageyama and the snort from Tsukishima.

"Why doesn't that surprise me." Kasamatsu muttered as Kise laughed and shrugged.

It fell to Akashi to explain, sighing slightly as he leaned back on his hands and met Hinata's gaze. "We were all part of the same junior high basketball team, we won nationals three years in a row and held an unbeatable status right up to graduation."

"Basically we were the best of the best." Aomine summarised. "We still _are_."

Kuroo and Daichi exchanged a glance. "Oh really?" The Nekoma captain hummed, resting his head on top of Kenma's. "So the five of you are the best of the best hm?"

"Six." A voice corrected, startling the captain. Kuroko raised an eyebrow as Kagami and Furihata laughed.

"Six..." Kuroo repeated. "Thought your teams only had five players at a time?"

"Ah yeah, Tetsu is the phantom-sixth man of Teikou." Aomine grinned, reaching over and ruffling Kuroko's hair until the smaller boy batted his hand away.

"Huh...so who was the ace of the miracles?" Hinata asked, his focus flickering between Kuroko and Akashi. "You all seem so different."

"That's the beauty of it." Akashi smiled. "There was no 'ace' of our team, we were all aces in our own right."

"Even Kuroko?"

"Especially Kuroko."

Kuroko smiled slightly as he listened to Akashi describe each of the miracles talents, the first year volleyball players listened in awe as Akashi recounted how they all discovered their individual talents and then went on to go to separate schools in order to find out which of them was the best.

"Wait, so you're all still friends regardless of this 'oath'?" Tanaka interrupted.

"Psh, of course." Kise replied, waving a hand dismissively as he shifted to lay on his stomach. "It's only a friendly rivalry."

Midorima snorted and Kagami laughed. "I don't think friendly rivalry calls for you to break a basketball hoop." Kagami challenged.

"You did it first!"

The conversation descended into bickering, it became obvious to the older students that these miracles, whilst being reportedly talented, were just as immature as their own first years. Daichi sighed as Kuroo chuckled at the quickly escalating chattering.

"Feeling old?" The Nekoma captain asked.

"Shut up." Daichi grumbled.

"You think you feel old?" Kasamatsu remarked. "Try dating one of these idiots."

Kise giggled and playfully jabbed Kasamatsu in the ribs. "Senpai is an old man~"

The Kaijo captain didn't rise to the occasion. When the bickering ceased for a brief moment, the idea of them staying with the volleyball teams for a week came up. Despite it pretty much being arranged already, there were calls for Kuroo to hurry up and ask his coach. Kenma showed no intention of letting the captain move though, much more content to focus on his game until Lev stuck his nose into his business.

"Seriously Lev, can you just stop being so--" Yaku sighed, yanking the first year back by his shirt collar before Kenma head-butted him for getting in the way.

"I died." Kenma stated, glancing up at his team mate with golden eyes that seemed indifferent to the scenario. The 8-bit sounds that accompanied the 'game over' screen blared out of the speakers.

"Well now you've done it." Kuroo sighed, resting his head on top of the other's as he reached around and plucked the console from his hands. "Come on you, you can come with me to talk to old man Nekomata."

"I'm sorry senpai!" Lev hurriedly apologised as Yaku sighed, Yamamoto and Inuoka tried to stifle their laughter as Kuroo used the game console to tempt Kenma to accompany him to see their coach.

"Don't see why I have to go..." The setter mumbled as he watched his captain begin to walk away. "I'm not the vice-captain."

"Kenma come on~" Kuroo called. "Unless you'd rather I hide your console somewhere again."

"You wouldn't dare Kuro."

The basketball players just watched as Kuroo glanced over his shoulder with a raised eyebrow and a small smirk. Bokuto laughed as Kenma got up and sighed, following his best friend with another grumble.

"So what's the deal with them?" Kagami asked.

"Hm? Oh they're childhood friends, Kozume doesn't tend to befriend many people but Kuroo somehow managed it. They've kinda been inseparable ever since." Yaku explained. "He's still shy around most people though."

"So how exactly did this knucklehead befriend him?" Kageyama gestured to Hinata who spluttered and immediately started bickering with the setter.

Suga and Daichi sighed as Yaku shrugged. Hinata and Kageyama continued to bicker until Tanaka intervened with Noya hot on his heels. Akashi got a sense of deja vu from watching them, they reminded him of Aomine and Kise's bickering.

"Muro-chin, when can we get some snacks?" Murasakibara murmured as the others carried on talking around them.

"Soon, just gotta wait for Kuroo to get back."

"I want snacks..."

The sun was setting quickly, bathing the hillside in an orange glow. Soon dinner would be ready for the volleyball players and the others would head back to their hotel, the new seeds of friendship set to be fertilised over the next coming days. There was every potential for things to get hectic, for unlikely bonds to be made and for a lot more playful bickering between team mates.

There was no concrete plan, no set schedule, anything could happen between the four groups and they were all looking forward to seeing what chaos they could cause.

 


	3. Sleeping Arrangements

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akaashi sighed heavily as Bokuto laughed.
> 
> "Okay new plan--" Bokuto started.
> 
> "We had an old plan? When the fuck did that happen?" Kuroo asked.

Chapter Three

Sleeping Arrangements

  
Whilst the Nekoma coach was happy to let the miracles stay, he wasn't about to let them have their own room. He figured that forcing the volleyball teams to share a room with them would make them learn something about working with others. Of course, the teams themselves weren't going to complain that much but it did present them with a small problem.

"So you'll be split between Karasuno's room and Nekoma's room, is that okay?" Kiyoko asked Akashi. There wasn't enough space in either one or the other for all the basketball boys to share so they would have to divide themselves accordingly.

"Of course, it'll be no issue." The captain smiled, ignoring the glares he was getting from Tanaka and Yamamoto for being within ten feet of Kiyoko.

The BBQ had really helped them all gel together, Aomine and Kagami had shown Karasuno how to eat their entire weight in meat, inadvertently having an eating contest with Kuroo and Bokuto as a result. Sakurai had gone into clutch time when someone tried to steal his food - strangely enough he was fine with Aomine doing it - and Kuroko had scared several people half to death by appearing and disappearing. Meanwhile Suga and Momoi had found themselves trying to assure Asahi that _no Akashi wasn't going to stab him with the plastic fork_ whilst Noya and Hinata took turns asking Furihata what being on a team with Kagami and Kuroko was like.

Kasamatsu and Himuro befriended the rather quiet Akaashi, the setter was polite enough to them but was more interested in how Bokuto seemed to keep trying to steal food from Lev and in turn getting his own food stolen by Kuroo. When the Kaijo captain noticed, he simply laughed until Kise snuck up behind him and scared him, getting put in a headlock for his trouble and Akaashi cracked a small smile. Daichi ended up comparing hand sizes with both Murasakibara and Kuroo to see who would realistically be able to hit the ball the hardest - a few remarks being made by Kuroo about what they were _really_ comparing got him a harsh nudge in the ribs by his rival - the Yosen giant didn't seem to care as long as he was fed more food for his trouble.

Kageyama was brooding for most of it, refusing to talk to anyone until Takao sat down with him, asking why he seemed so glum and trying not to laugh when it became obvious. One glance in Hinata's direction said it all really. He ended up giving an impromptu pep talk about confessing feelings, to which Kageyama denied he had such feelings and Takao simply laughed and said it was written all over his face. Kageyama snorted and in a bizarre - or desperate - attempt to not seem like the outcast, sought out Tsukishima and Yamaguchi so he was at least with people he knew.

As the food was eaten and the plates cleared away, it became clear that no-one would be sleeping early that night. They all parted ways briefly to sort out just where everyone was being put for the next few nights. Suga and Midorima found themselves trying to divide the twelve teens between two rooms in a way that wouldn't cause too much chaos, Akashi had declared he wanted nothing to do with the process and had helpfully dumped it all on his friend.

"I want to share a room with Kise-senpai!" Hinata declared, he had been told numerous times by Kasamatsu to stop calling Kise his senpai as it would inflate the blond's ego and the captain would never hear the end of it.

"Yeah but Asahi-san is terrified of Akashi." Tanaka told him, ruffling the smaller boy's hair. "So some of them have to stay with Kuroo and Kenma."

"No fair!"  
     
Suga sighed heavily. "Okay, so say Kise can stay here, does that automatically--"

"No offence Sugawara, but I'm not staying in a room with hyperactive first years." Kasamatsu sighed. "Ryouta can by all means but I want sleep."

The co-captain nodded. "I understand totally, I'm actually sending Daichi to Kuroo's room because I know he'll get annoyed very quickly at them not settling down."

"But isn't he your captain?" Midorima asked. "Will they fall in line without him here?"

"Ennoshita can handle it, as can I." Suga smiled, mentally wanting to berate this first year for questioning his authority. "Anyway, so you and Takao will be joining us, and we can also fit Kagami and Kuroko. That'll put everyone else with Kuroo."

The Nekoma captain poked his head around the door at the mention of his name. "Oh Bokuto and Akaashi are staying in my room too by the way."

"Oh joy..." Kasamatsu sighed.

"Hope that's not a problem Yukio." Kuroo smirked.

Suga rolled his eyes slightly before relaying all the room arrangements to the boys gathered in Karasuno's room. There were no objections at first, most of them seemed to go along with the plans drafted by the vice-captain. Daichi was the only one who seemed reluctant but he was assured that Kuroo and Bokuto would be very accommodating, the Karasuno captain waved it off with a slight grimace and ordered everyone to get on with rolling out the futons.

Everyone ended up in Nekoma's room for the rest of the evening, Kenma tried not to get dragged into the conversation and was much more interested in his PSP game. Kuroko had picked up on the other's reclusiveness and sat next to him silently watching the graphics on screen as Kenma paid little to no attention to the loud conversations around them. They were also joined by Furihata and Yamaguchi, their skittish natures drew them to each other and they started comparing sharing the court with such talented players whilst they saw themselves as hopelessly average. Tsukishima wasn't particularly interested in talking to anyone, more focused on side glancing at Yamaguchi and would've been left in peace if Bokuto hadn't decided he 'needed' to socialise with him and Kagami.

Kageyama had finally stopped brooding, he had found himself talking to Kasamatsu about keeping his slightly temperamental streak under control whilst Hinata and Kise dragged Lev into a debate about who had the scariest captain. The conclusion was; Kasamatsu was somewhat unpredictable, Daichi just gave off the dad vibe, Akashi was an enigma to even his own team, Bokuto had more mood swings than a teenage boy should and Kuroo was particularly gifted in charisma resulting him being unsettling sometimes.

"Although senpai is great most of the time! Sometimes he just gets over competitive with Bokuto-senpai." Lev panicked, feeling as if he was betraying his own team by suggesting it in the first place. "Or over-protective if Kenma is involved."

"Kenma?" Kise smiled. "Oh he reminds me so much of Kurokocchi~ So quiet but he's probably secretly taking note of everything happening. Oh does he do a disappearing act?"

Lev and Hinata gave Kise a confused look. "No? Well he's so quiet some people forget he's there...Kuroo-senpai is really close to him though so he always seems to know where he is." Lev replied. "Okay who's vice-captain is the most mom-like?"

Hinata grinned. "Suga senpai is the best mom!"

Kise started giggling and looked at Kasamatsu. "Can you imagine us referring to Kobori-senpai as mom?"

"Shut up idiot." Kasamatsu replied, fighting his own laughter. "D-Don't distract me with--"

"Kobori making us bento!"

Kasamatsu laughed at the mental image before coughing loudly and playfully shoving Kise in order to get back to the more serious conversation he was having with Kageyama. There were several more friendships being founded that evening; Noya and Takao were getting along like a house on fire, somewhat forcing both Asahi and Midorima into their conversation. With Asahi trying to keep Noya from getting too carried away with his outrageous ideas and Midorima having to use every ounce of his self-control to not laugh, whilst he was in a very public relationship with his point guard, he tried not to outwardly show just how weak he was to the other's charm.

Ennoshita had given up trying to keep Tanaka and Yamamoto from getting into an over-the-top arm wrestling match, they had dragged Aomine and Himuro into it only to quickly realise that the Touou ace wasn't quite the easy opponent they had imagined. Akashi simply watched from afar next to the second year with a smile, remarking about how Aomine wouldn't go down without a fight and getting a heavy sigh from the other.

"May I ask you something?" Ennoshita glanced at the red-head.

"If it's about how I managed to control a person like Aomine then I don't know--"

"No actually, it's more about being a captain."

Akashi raised an eyebrow. "You're the one everyone says is taking over from Sawamura, correct?"

"Yes. I'm not sure if I'm really the right person though."

Aomine slammed Yamamoto's hand down onto the floor with a triumphant grin, Tanaka exclaimed loudly that he was next and he wasn't going to lose, the hot-headedness only adding to both Aomine and Himuro's amusement.

"I was handed the captaincy at Teikou after our senpai stood down. I've never admitted it before but it took a while to properly learn how to wield the power I possessed. It was rough but if you keep your sights set on success then you'll achieve more than you think you can."

Ennoshita hummed, it wasn't really the advice he was looking for but he took the words on board nonetheless, watching Tanaka concentrating on beating Aomine to try and distract himself.

 

* * *

 

 

The evening stretched into the night, Yaku deemed it too late to continue talking and reminded Kuroo - who was somehow the one put in charge of everyone - that they had been practising hard so everyone needed sleep. The captain sighed as he took his libero's suggestion into consideration and gently encouraged everyone to start settling down to sleep, the ones staying in the other room were herded out like cats by Suga and Ennoshita.

It was almost a foregone conclusion that Karasuno's room would be rowdier than Nekoma's, Noya and Hinata were in high spirits and adding Kise and Takao to the mix only heightened the chattering between them. Tsukishima and Midorima seemed to agree on one thing; the first years knew how to be annoying. Midorima hadn't really spoken to any of Karasuno but he instantly picked up on the fact that Tsukishima didn't really _like_ his team mates or the sport in general, the antisocial vibe coming off the shorter first year reminded him a lot of himself.

"I'm guessing that you're reconsidering if this is where you belong?" Midorima sighed as he sat next to Tsukishima, Yamaguchi had been dragged into Hinata's loud conversation despite his protests so the blond boy was sat alone.

"What's it to you?" He replied, not even so much as glancing at Midorima. "Are you gonna give me a speech like Sugawara about how I should warm up to my team mates more?"

"Hardly." Midorima allowed himself to smile slightly, the remark reminding him of those turbulent junior high days. "You practice alone or with them?"

Tsukishima side-glanced at the ace. "Reluctantly, with them."

"Is there a reason you hate it?"

"None of your business."

"I remember something someone once said, 'coming to hate something you love is a painful thing.'. I couldn't imagine hating basketball but I get this vibe from you that you harbour some resentment towards volleyball."

"Shut up." Tsukishima was glaring slightly. "You don't know me, don't pretend to know anything about me."

Takao seemed to take note of the shift in mood and bounded over to Midorima, glancing at Tsukishima's apprehensive expression as he tugged on the miracle's hand. "Shin-chan come on, our futons are over _here_." He smiled.

The blond first year wasn't left alone for more than a few seconds. A timid voice distracted him from his internal fury, a familiar freckled face coming into view as the miracle left him.

"Are you okay Tsuki?" Yamaguchi murmured, sitting cross-legged on his futon next to Tsukishima's. "You seem--"

"I'm fine."

"Tsuki...are you sure?"

The lightest of touches to Tsukishima's shoulder seemed to make the fury melt away, he sighed heavily as the ongoing chattering faded into background noise. Yamaguchi smiled as he noticed the change but said nothing more. They'd had their argument regarding Tsukishima's passion for the sport, that was enough for Yamaguchi for now. Tsukishima leaned slightly into the other's touch and allowed himself to smile slightly.

Asahi wasn't sure how to cope with all these excitable kouhai's, he was used to Noya and Hinata's bubbly personalities but Kise was on a whole new level and the third year wondered how Kasamatsu got him to focus during games. He was forever being dragged into the conversation about 'awesome aces' and Noya would always look at him with that beaming smile that made him feel weak. He was already sat on his futon ready to sleep but much to both his and Suga's dismay, there seemed to be no sign of them getting any soon.

Kagami felt somewhat out of place in this room but found comfort in Kuroko's stoic presence, even if the other was more inclined to watch the room silently as Suga and Ennoshita tried to coax their teammates to calm down and sleep. Tanaka had long since given up trying to help and was already snoring next to Kageyama, the setter was almost glaring at Kise but at least _trying_ to be subtle about it.

Not subtle enough for Kuroko to not pick up on it.

"Kise-kun is causing friction." He remarked quietly to Kagami.

"Huh?"

"The first year setter is envious of Kise-kun's friendship with the wannabe ace."

"I'm not getting tangled up in that mess." Kagami grumbled, moving his pillow around before laying down. He sighed heavily before calling out to the blond miracle. "Oi Kise, get your butt over here."

Kise rolled his eyes, gaining a laugh from Hinata before getting up and wandering over to where Kuroko and Kagami were. "What?"

"You're causing friction between the first years." Kuroko offered. "The brooding setter has a thing for Hinata-san."

Kise raised an eyebrow before glancing over, sure enough Kageyama's gaze was on Hinata as the first year continued to talk loudly with Noya. It surprised Kise that Hinata hadn't picked up on it, then again he knew from experience that certain people needed these things spelt out to them. With everyone still in high spirits Suga had reached his limit, checking his phone and realising it was past midnight already.

"Okay, everyone go to sleep before I go and get Daichi."

The Karasuno players knew that Suga wasn't joking, they also knew their captain would be less than impressed at getting woken up to come and yell at them.

Except Daichi wasn't any closer to getting sleep himself.

In the other room, Bokuto and Lev were having an intense debate about whether owls could really turn their heads all the way around. Kuroo and Yamamoto just encouraged them whilst Akaashi gave deadpan answers to anything he was asked. Himuro and Aomine would chime in occasionally just to rile up one of them and Yaku would sigh loudly. Akashi and Kasamatsu exchanged a glance in the dimness of the third year's phone but refused to get involved whilst Kenma, Furihata and Sakurai continued to ignore the conversation and watch whatever game Kenma was now playing, the screen dimly lighting his bored face.

"Owls can turn their heads 270 degrees." Akaashi finally stated, the novelty of the discussion wearing off. "So no they can't Bokuto-san."

"But they totally look like they can!"

"If we're going to debate something can it least be _useful_?" Daichi sighed. "Like what tomorrow's plan is?"

Kuroo chuckled in the darkness. "Does there have to be a plan?"

"Plans are kinda useful." Himuro hummed, reaching out in the darkness and gently running his fingers through Murasakibara's hair as the giant slept.

There was a pause.

"I wonder what Kiyoko-san is doing?" Yamamoto murmured.

"Sleeping. Like we should be." Daichi replied.

"Gee and I thought Midorima was a tight-ass." Aomine muttered under his breath, getting a kick from Akashi for trash-talking about his ex-teammate.

"What did you say?"

"Sawamura-senpai please calm down." Akaashi sighed.

"A plan would be good though." Furihata piped up. "What is there to do around here anyway?"

"There's a pool." Yaku replied. "The beach is half an hour away, we could go into Tokyo if you really want."

"Wait does everyone actually know how to swim?" Kasamatsu asked.

"Why on earth would we want to know how to swim?" Kuroo sniggered. "You clearly don't get that we're cat-like."

Akaashi sighed heavily as Bokuto laughed.

"Okay new plan--" Bokuto started.

"We had an _old_ plan? When the fuck did that happen?" Kuroo asked. "Don't tell Sawamura we had a plan, he'll think we're keeping secrets."

"I'm going to throw you both in the pool." Daichi muttered.

"Now now children." Yaku sighed as some of the Nekoma under-classmen sniggered in the dark. "Bokuto, please continue with your plan."

"Well I was just gonna suggest we all go swimming and if people don't know how to swim then we teach them."

"Bokuto-san, you don't know how to swim."

"I _do_!"

"You nearly drowned last time."

"Akaaaashi don't be mean!"

"Geez you two are so...ugh." Kasamatsu grumbled to no-one in particular, Akashi snorted beside him as the Fukurodani duo continued to bicker.

It was going to be a long night.

 

* * *

 

 

The girls were much more at ease with each other, Yachi was shy at first when the four of them first settled into the small room they were sharing. During the training camp they were the floor above the boys, but as this was no longer an official camp and more of a vacation they relaxed the rules and moved to a room along the hallway from them. Kiyoko was calm as always, even when Tanaka showed up at the door asking if they were all okay and assuring them that nothing shady was going to happen.

Kiyoko hadn't gotten a word in edgeways when Riko appeared at the door and told Tanaka that _of course nothing will happen because those miracles know better_ and promptly sent him scurrying back to whatever lunacy he had come from. Yachi had to admit, Riko was scary but in a weirdly _hot_ way.

 Momoi was more than happy to indulge them all in stories from her days at Teikou and Touou - entitled 'boys are clueless' - and had Yachi and Kiyoko both giggling and blushing at the shenanigans the miracles had been involved in. It paved the way for gossiping and the age old question of "if you had to get with one of the boys who would it be?" which prompted a lot more blushing from all of them.

"Come on Yachi-chan!" Momoi smiled, laying on her stomach and tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. "There's got to be one of the guys that you like the look of. One of the third years? Second years?"

Riko rolled her eyes slightly as Yachi blushed a deeper shade of red. Kiyoko giggled slightly and patted her head comfortingly.

"If it helps, if I had to choose then Suga-san would be mine." The third year offered. "And out of those basketball boys I think that captain Kasamatsu gives off a similar vibe to Daichi."

"Oh the vice-captain?" Momoi asked, now playing with a separate lock of her hair as she thought. "Nice, although Kasa is very temperamental so watch out for that."

Yachi smiled and toyed with the hem of her shirt. "I-I mean Yamaguchi is cute...a-and Furi."

Momoi squealed as the other first year blushed. "You're too cute Yachi-chan."  
   
"Okay Satsuki, enlighten us." Riko sighed, sensing the other's embarrassment. "Which one of our dorks would you get with if you had to?"

"Tetsu-kun of course!"

"Really?"

"Well, out of the volleyball players I'd maybe go for that Akaashi guy. He seems mysterious."

Kiyoko raised an eyebrow at Riko. "What about you then?"

Riko's cheeks tinted pink. "I mean the guys of Seirin are all incredibly irritating and I couldn't imagine dating any of them."

"You're avoiding the question~" Momoi chimed.

"Fine! I mean if we're talking about the guys present then I'd probably also choose Kasa." Riko huffed. "And I don't really know any of the volleyball players--"

"I think you and I both know you'd go for Kuroo." Momoi smirked.

"Well it's pointless saying that because you and I both know _I'm gay._ "

Yachi and Kiyoko exchanged a glance as Momoi giggled and nodded. "Point proven, but you know the guys are probably having equally dumb conversations."

"I only know that two of our players are gay." Kiyoko smiled. "The rest of them are either straight or still in the closet."

"Asahi and Noya right?" Momoi asked. "It's pretty obvious."

"I personally think Daichi might be. He keeps staring at Suga during practice and they're frequently referred to as 'mom and dad' by the first years."

The conversation quickly turned into Momoi and Kiyoko exchanging ideas on who was gay and who wasn't, Riko busied herself on her phone as Yachi just marvelled at being in the same room as both Kiyoko and these two gorgeous managers.

"Hey." Riko interrupted the debate on whether Aomine really did have a crush on Sakurai or not.

"Hm?" Momoi replied.

"...we should totally prank the guys."

"How?" Yachi asked.

"I have a few ideas, tell me which you like best."

 


	4. Something in the water

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Yeah well curiosity killed the cat." Daichi sighed.
> 
> "But satisfaction bought it back...I'll leave it up to you what kind of satisfaction." Kuroo winked.

Chapter Four

Something in the water

  
Nekoma's pool was outside, a blessing in the sunshine and slowly building heat for those who actually knew how to swim. It seemed that Kasamatsu was right to be somewhat concerned. With the exception of Kuroko, all of the miracles were confident swimmers, the shadow sat on the side of the pool with his legs in the water but showed no interest in actually swimming. Riko had no intention of swimming either, she was more on lifeguard duty as it became clear that Kageyama didn't know how to swim and was being stubborn about learning, Suga gave up after a while as it was clear the first year was determined to stand knee-deep in the water and no more.

There was a diving board that Aomine and Akashi were taking in turns to try and out dive each other on, it was proving a worthy spectacle as neither of them wanted to let the other outshine them. Bokuto saw it as a challenge more than anything as he watched Aomine surface with a grin. The Nekoma team themselves didn't live up to their cat-like nature as Kuroo had suggested, well not all of them anyway. Yamamoto and Lev were more than happy to splash around, Yaku took a more relaxed approach by hanging out with Midorima and Suga. Kenma was set against getting in the pool and Kuroo wasn't overly keen on the idea of getting wet until Daichi and Bokuto 'accidentally' shoved him into the pool to prove a point.

"I get the feeling that Kuroo-senpai doesn't like water." Kuroko murmured to Kenma, the setter was sat next to Kuroko and had been asked several times by Lev to join in on the watery fun, each time he pretended he didn't hear the first year. The half-Russian had turned his attention to Sakurai and Furihata instead and finally left Kenma alone.

"He barely knows how to swim." Kenma replied with the faintest of smiles. "He always skipped out on pool practice by being the coach."

Kuroko smiled as he watched the captain glare up at Daichi whilst Bokuto hooted with laughter. "So do you not like swimming either?"

"I prefer to stay out of the limelight." Kenma replied, avoiding the question.

"I understand." Kuroko sighed, reaching behind him to grab his phone from the cluster of bags and jackets. He gestured to the three captains across the pool from them bickering about whether owls could swim and snapped a picture. "I find it's useful for taking photos."

"That sounds slightly stalkerish." Kenma remarked, taking an interest in just how at ease Kuroko seemed taking pictures of people.

"We're gifted with the ability to go unnoticed...might as well put it to use."

Kenma raised an eyebrow as he watched Kuroko take several pictures of the others, the shadow went on to explain that no-one else really thought to take many pictures beyond the occasional selfie and that he felt like they needed to preserve these memories. The setter listened and could kind of understand where the other was coming from, with his senpais graduating that year he felt that maybe Kuroko was onto something.

Noya was trying to get various members of Fukurodani to agree to a water volleyball match and got turned down, the idea of playing _more_ volleyball in the heat wasn't going down well. He eventually convinced his own team mates and some from Nekoma to simply play catch in the water, dragging his own boyfriend into the game whether Asahi wanted to or not. On the side of the pool, Kise was telling Hinata about the photo shoot he had to do in swimwear once, Himuro laughed slightly as Hinata exchanged a glance with Takao. The blond was about to continue with his story when Kagami snuck up behind him and pushed him into the pool, laughing loudly until he was given the same treatment by Himuro.

Murasakibara was much more content to sleep under the shade of a parasol, Tsukishima sat near him but was also content to be left alone with his music. He glanced over at Yamaguchi who was being fussed over my Yachi, the freckled boy would burn easily so the second manager had been reminding him to put sun screen on whilst Kiyoko relaxed with Momoi. Tsukishima felt a sense of panic rush through him as Yamaguchi asked Yachi to help cover his exposed back. It was almost as if he was jealous.

The two female managers who had felt the desire to wear their swimsuits were being 'protected' by Tanaka, Kiyoko had to apologise several times in advance for the second year's fierce loyalty and assured Momoi that there wasn't anything happening between them - almost insisting that she could tell there was a slight inkling that Ennoshita was more up Tanaka's alley. Momoi giggled each time and told her it was fine, almost endearing, before starting to tell her about how Riko could read a player's potential by simply looking at their physique, much to the other's interest.

"Why are you just stood in the water?" Hinata asked Kageyama as he started to prepare for going swimming with Lev and Bokuto.

"Shut up." Kageyama replied, trying not to pout or look at the subtly toned biceps of his team mate. "Go swimming already."

"...can you swim?"

"That's not the point."

"You can't swim." Hinata stated with a slight smile that Kageyama wanted to wash off his face.

"Sh-Shut up!"

"Suga-senpai could teach you! Or one of the other--"

Kageyama grabbed Hinata's arm and was about to launch him down the pool to where Aomine had just surfaced after another dive when the other dropped the jokey attitude.

"I could teach you."

"Don't be stup--"

Hinata seized Kageyama's hands and dragged him further down the pool, the floor sloping away bit by bit and making the other want to jerk his hands away. Yet they stayed holding hands, why, Kageyama didn't really know, instead he hoped to hell that no-one was watching as his dumbass teammate spun around and started telling him how to 'tread water'.

Akaashi had been swimming lengths when he bumped into Bokuto, despite what he had implied the previous night, his captain could swim and could swim _well_. His physique made the co-captain blush slightly as his gaze flickered up and down the exposed chest, the water lapping at the toned stomach muscles and snapping Akaashi's focus back to the other's face.

"See something you like?" Bokuto asked, knowing full well Akaashi was not going to go along with any obvious flirting whilst in public.

"Do you have any ideas for later on?"

"Ohoho Akaashi are you asking me to--"

"Not here dumbass." Akaashi dead-panned, willing himself not to entertain that idea. "I meant regarding what to do with our friends and guests."

Bokuto chuckled, wrapping an arm around the other's shoulders as he surveyed the chaos of the pool, Kuroo was adamant that no-one was to push him in the water again as Kasamatsu watched Akashi raise an eyebrow at the statement.

"I think we should see if that first-year captain can handle himself after a few drinks."

"Bokuto-san that's a terr--"

"Great idea! I know, thanks Akaashi." Bokuto grinned, leaning down and pressing his forehead against the other's. Akaashi's cheeks flared as he processed how close they were in public and what their guests would think of him, making Bokuto chuckle and release him quickly. "So I'll see to it, don't worry Akaashi!"

"I'm sure you will Bokuto..." The other sighed to himself. "I'm sure you will."

The pool shenanigans continued for most of the day, pausing briefly for a light lunch before resuming. Noya finally got his full pool volleyball match after challenging Yaku outright at the lunch table. Some of them preferred to wait it out before jumping straight in again, soaking up the sun instead and relaxing a little.

Kuroko took the opportunity to show his lover the pictures he had taken, including the one selfie he had managed to persuade Kenma to take with him. Kagami was far too used to seeing his own stupidity caught on Kuroko's camera that he didn't raise an eyebrow to many of them, the photos that included their friends and the volleyball teams got a lot of laughs out of him. Kenma wasn't showing anyone his pictures - partly because he knew Kuroo would demand he got rid of the one he snapped of the captain mid-fall into the pool - but also because he didn't know how the others would react. He wasn't exactly close to his team mates and the idea of them knowing he had pictures of them made him want to drown himself.

The setting sun cast the water in a light orange glow, the exhaustion was getting to some of them as those left in the pool stuck to lazily swimming laps and playing Marco polo. Kageyama had reluctantly accepted Suga's help in learning how to swim after he floated out of his depth and nearly drowned Hinata by clinging to him in desperation. The Karasuno co-captain was more calm and collected than Hinata and Kageyama felt safer in his senpai's care, at least Suga would be able to stop him drowning. It didn't stop Hinata trying to help though, Noya and Tanaka watched from afar as the first year unintentionally antagonized his team mate and nearly got dunked under the water as a result.

"Should we do something?" Tanaka asked Asahi who was busy trying to dry his hair without taking it out of its bun. "Looks like Kageyama is gonna try and drown Hinata again.

"I'm sure Suga-senpai has it covered." Noya answered instead, his attention drifting to the opposite side of the pool where Himuro and Takao were trying to convince Sakurai to do...something. Noya wasn't sure what all the pointing at Aomine was meant to suggest but it was clear that Sakurai was having none of it as he shook his head. "Say, do you think we go out somewhere to eat tonight with some of the basketball players?"

"Eh? Why not eat here?" Tanaka asked, "and that food bill is gonna be massive given how much some of them eat."

"I was thinking more the non-miracles." Noya shrugged, pointing at the three boys across the pool from them. "They seem pretty cool, what do you think Asahi?"

The gentle giant glanced over to the teens in question. "Can't hurt I suppose."

 

* * *

 

 

Whoever decided to let Bokuto and Kuroo commandeer another room to so-say 'sleep' in was going to be answering a lot of questions. The two captains hadn't told anyone about the great idea that Akaashi had inspired, they were keeping this strictly between them until the last moment. They were curious to see how Akashi would behave when with other captains and not all his friends, of course getting him alone was going to be no small feat, they needed cooperation from some key players.

"Absolutely not." Daichi stated, Kuroo rolled his eyes and threw an arm around the other captain's shoulders.

"C'mon Sawamura, you know you want some quality time with us." He grinned.

"Not with the likes of you and alcohol I don't."

"Boo you whore." Bokuto remarked. "Akaashi will be there it'll be fine!"

"And how do you propose you get the others to agree?" Daichi was already done with the other captains suggesting stupid ideas, they were worse than his own team.

"That's the beauty of it, you know Aomine can't resist a challenge and Kasamatsu will want in on seeing his rival make an idiot of himself, Kise will tag along because it's Kasa and Akashi will _have_ to join us." Kuroo listed off.

It worried Daichi just how far Kuroo had thought all of this out. He reluctantly agreed only on the basis that _someone_ will have to try and help Akaashi keep order. A lot of the basketball players had gone out with Noya and Tanaka, meaning that the ones who were left behind were conveniently the ones Kuroo had nominated to be part of this social experiment. When Daichi told Suga just what was happening he could see the motherly nature of the other about to come out before he put a finger to Suga's lips. The setter's cheeks blossomed as Daichi explained that he was going to be the voice of reason and _not_ to drink himself stupid, his finger still pressed against the soft lips.

"...so don't worry too much okay?" Daichi finished, catching himself staring at Suga's wide eyes and rosy complexion as he took his finger away.

"I'll do my best, just don't let the freshmen catch you. And don't let the coaches catch you either!" Suga replied, running a hand through his hair and tugging on the ends. "...and be careful around Kuroo-san. I get an uneasy feeling from him."

Daichi smiled. "Will do. I'll see you later."

Aomine and Kise were definitely down for drinks with the captains, Kasamatsu snorted at the suggestion and was adamant he wasn't going to get dragged into any stupidity, but agreed to tag along anyway. Akashi was a little suspicious, given that he had planned to go with Furihata when the other left to go out with the second years but had been somewhat kidnapped by Bokuto instead.

He agreed to attend this strange meeting on one condition; Kuroko was to be there too.

And if Kuroko was going to be there, then Kenma naturally followed.

"So care to explain what the purpose of this is?" Akashi asked as him and Kuroko found the smaller room that had been 'given' to the captains for that evening's entertainment. There were a few pillows that Bokuto had acquired from Fukurodani's room arranged in a circle with the somewhat suspicious brown paper bag in the middle.

"Just some light-hearted bonding." Kuroo replied, gesturing to the pillows. "Take a seat and we'll get started."

Kuroko wasn't really sure what to expect as he sat down with Akashi, he exchanged a glance with Kenma but the setter was giving nothing away if he knew anything. Aomine and Kise had already sussed out that this had something to do with Kuroo and Bokuto being curious about Akashi being a capable captain, Kasamatsu was just relieved to have Daichi and Akaashi there.

"So, first things first." Kuroo smiled, rummaging in the bag and producing the plastic shot glasses they had bought. "We're all gonna take a drink."

Kuroko and Kenma both declined straight away. At first Bokuto was going to argue but thought better of it, the mission here was to get Akashi drunk, everyone else was just a bonus and/or collateral damage.

"Do I _want_ to know how you got hold of all of this?" Kasamatsu narrowed his eyes at the Nekoma captain, he couldn't help but liken him to Imayoshi and that was not a good thing in the slightest.

"Tsk, so many questions. Don't worry about it Yukio."

"Don't call me that." Kasamatsu snorted.

Kuroo smiled, glancing at Bokuto and chuckling slightly. "Loosen up then."

Kise and Aomine didn't object to the drinks offered to them, Daichi and Akaashi reluctantly went along with it just to be good sports, Kasamatsu eyed the colourless liquid suspiciously but drank anyway. Kenma convinced Kuroo to let him go to the vending machine to get something for Kuroko and himself to drink, the captain gave him more money to buy some sodas for mixing stuff later. Kenma didn't care to know what 'stuff' Kuroo had in mind, he just knew that this would be more than entertaining to watch.

Akashi had never drunk in his life. He didn't see the point. He'd had the odd glass of sake at special occasions but nothing like what Kuroo was offering him, he wasn't even sure _what_ it was. He watched as Kise shuddered slightly after drinking the shot, he figured it tasted sour but otherwise harmless. He was very much aware that he was being watched by the volleyball captains, quickly figuring out that this was all set up to challenge him and his status as a captain.

He supposed indulging them in their little game wouldn't hurt.

 

* * *

 

 

Kise's fingers felt warm against his face, everything seemed louder than usual or maybe it was just Aomine talking a lot louder. He was telling the others about the match against Kagami and how he 'owned that ass'. Kuroo and Bokuto's drunk personas weren't that much different to their sober ones, they were louder if anything and more hands on. The playful slaps to the shoulder and nudges to the side were more tender but less calculated. Not that Kise was anyone to judge, his hand had been lightly tracing circles into Kasamatsu's inner thigh and getting half-hearted death glares in response.

Akaashi kept his poker face for most of it, although he became more talkative especially when Bokuto threw his arm around his shoulders and mumbled something in his ear. The setter's cheeks flared red and coughed politely before shoving him away and into Kuroo. Daichi had refused most of the drinks offered and as a result had ended up being the one to pour everyone else's drinks for fear of Bokuto spilling an entire bottle over the floor.

As for the Rakuzan captain, he was struggling to keep himself in check. He kept glancing at the way Bokuto would practically nuzzle Akaashi's neck and cause the other's facade to waver. Kuroko kept asking him if he was okay and he continued to say he was fine. He was _fine_ , his heart was beating faster than usual, he felt hotter and more restless but he was fine.

"So, clear something up for us." Kuroo stated after Aomine finished gloating. "...are any of you gay?"

"Oh my god Kuroo seriously." Daichi breathed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"What's it to you hmm?" Kise replied, regarding him with a somewhat predatory gaze that made the captain second guess who was really the dangerous miracle in the room. "Are you fishing for something?"

"Don't encourage him." Kasamatsu hissed, cuffing the back of Kise's head gently.

"No no it's cool if you don't wanna say." Kuroo put his hands up in defence, spilling some of his drink over his arm. "Just curious."

"Yeah well, curiosity killed the cat." Daichi sighed.

"But satisfaction bought it back...I'll leave it up to you what kind of satisfaction." Kuroo winked, causing the Karasuno captain to nearly choke on his drink.

"Why would it matter to you though?" Aomine hummed. "Unless you're gay and looking for someone to fuck."

"Aominecchi that's literally what I said but in less crude terms!" Kise protested.

Bokuto laughed loudly as Kuroo did an impression of a goldfish at the blunt wording. Akaashi couldn’t help but laugh, his poker face falling away as the alcohol worked its magic. Kuroko and Kenma both appeared to be oblivious to the conversation, both of them focused more on Kenma's games console but not completely shutting out the bickering.

"Well Kuroo? Is that what you're after?" Bokuto nudged his best friend's side. "Should've said so, me and Keiji would be willing to have you--"

Akaashi hit Bokuto in the face with a pillow to shut him up. Kise and Aomine knowing immediately who that reminded them of. Daichi sighed heavily and knocked back a shot, he was too sober to deal with these idiots. Akashi wasn't sure what to make of this situation or the declaration, simply taking another sip of his drink and silently wished Furihata was with him.

"Stupid owl." Akaashi grumbled slightly, taking the drink Kise offered him.

"Wait, so you and him are--"

"I suppose there's no point hiding it anymore huh." Akaashi sighed. "Yes we are. I try not to let it be public knowledge."

Kise smiled. "I know that feeling don't worry." He stated, subconsciously squeezing Kasamatsu's thigh and making him flinch slightly.

"Enough of that talk." Kuroo declared, rummaging around in the bag and finding some regular sized cups. "Daichi fill up some shot glasses for me."

The concept of drinking from a cup that had a shot glass inside it was one that Akashi was vaguely familiar with. It was a Western thing from what he knew, Kuroo explained - in his incredibly wasted state - that they had to drink it all in one go. Kuroko and Kenma sensed a photo opportunity.

"Ooh we've done this before Aominecchi!"

"Shut the fuck up about that idiot!"

"Oh do tell." Akaashi stated, eying Bokuto's buzzed expression as Daichi and Kuroo finished handing out the drinks.

"Well we were on winter vacation and my sister had just come back from a business trip in Europe. She told us about this and we tried it whilst my parents were out. Aominecchi hated it and threw up--"

"I'm going to throw up on you in a minute if you don't shut up." Aomine grumbled.

"Well please don't vomit here." Kuroo sighed, holding his cup in the air as a toast. "Bottoms up everyone."

Akashi immediately understood why Aomine threw up. Kuroko watched him intently as he nearly gagged on the foul taste, he sensed that Kuroo was definitely trying to kill him at this point as he finished the horrible concoction with a splutter. He could already feel the intense buzz, nothing up until that point had compared to it and he was definitely losing his hold on himself.

Daichi vaguely wondered how long Kuroo was intending this to go on for, it was already way past ten and the others would be back by now, they'd notice them all being missing and god knew what they were going to think. Kise was now past being sociable, nuzzling Kasamatsu's neck as the third year loosely wrapped an arm around his waist. Aomine grinned as Kuroo seemed too buzzed to take control, Bokuto was trying to convince Akaashi that it was totally okay for the setter to take his shirt off and the other looked to be seconds away from beating his boyfriend with a pillow again.

"Okay, I think it would be wise to stop there." Daichi stated. "Save the rest for another time."

Kuroo immediately protested, although the sounds that came out of his mouth weren't really words. Kenma sighed as he found his best friend resting his head on his shoulder, Kuroko was starting to notice Akashi's change in demeanour and gathered that his former captain probably needed some water sooner rather than later.

"We just got started!" Kuroo managed to finally squawk in protest, nearly deafening Kenma in the process.

"And you're completely wasted!" Daichi challenged.

"Great! That was the plan anyway. We were getting pretty boy there drunk and he's gone too."

"Did...you just call Akashi 'pretty boy'?" Aomine asked, raising an eyebrow.

Kuroo smirked, crawling over to where Akashi was sat, the red-head eyed him but was too far gone to really process what was happening. Kuroo's arms wrapped around him and the third year hugged him tightly.

"He is pretty though!" Kuroo declared.

Kenma was caught between scowling and laughing. He wasn't sure what exactly was going through Kuroo's mind - upon reflection, probably nothing - but Akashi's wide eyes seemed to register that he was being hugged by a drunk stranger. Kise glanced up and burst into a fit of giggles, attracting Bokuto's attention and a similar reaction erupting from the other captain. Kuroko felt bad for it but no-one would believe it happened if he didn't have photographic evidence.

"And that is my cue to leave before you all end up dead." Kasamatsu declared, knowing full well this could only go downhill from that point. "You coming Ryouta?"

"There's a broom closet down the hall if you need it." Bokuto winked at Kasamatsu, watching the other's cheeks flare red as he grabbed Kise's hand and tugged him to stand up, leading him out of the room quickly.

Akashi wasn't sure what to make of the situation he found himself in. Kuroo's arms were firm but he didn't feel like he was being squeezed that tightly, he could feel the other's breath across the back of his neck and Kuroo's chest against his back as he was tugged closer.

"So pretty."

"Kuro you're being creepy." Kenma stated, standing up abruptly and walking behind the captain, tugging on his shirt and getting him to let go of Akashi surprisingly quickly.

"Kenma!" Kuroo seized his best friend's hand. The setter had to dig his heels in to not get pulled down, instead pulling the other up on unsteady feet.

"I'm taking you back to Yaku-senpai." Kenma stated, throwing Kuroo's arm around his shoulders. "I'll see you later." He nodded to the others.

There was a moment of silence after Kuroo was dragged out of the room. Daichi sighed in relief and apologised for Kuroo's behaviour. Aomine laughed it off and told him not to worry. Bokuto remarked how Kuroo was a clingy drunk and Kenma was unfortunately used to dragging him away from guys and girls alike.

"Wait, so they're not a thing?" Aomine asked.

"Nope." Bokuto replied, hand finding Akaashi's and linking their fingers together. "I dunno what Kuroo's deal is to be honest. He's rather open about wanting someone but never really settled for anyone. The chemistry between him and Kenma is purely bros, y'know?"

"In any case," Akaashi sighed "Kuroo-san will sober up and forget about it all."

"Sounds like you speak from experience." Kuroko stated as Daichi started cleaning up the trash.

"Let's just say me and him don't exactly see eye to eye for a reason."

"Your height difference?" Bokuto suggested.

A pillow was swiftly delivered to his face for the second time that evening.


	5. Of Setters and Captains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Shut up Kuroo, you're drunk." 
> 
> "'m not though."
> 
> "You just waltzed in here declaring yourself 'the neko king'!"

Chapter Five

Of Setters and Captains 

 

"But Yaku--"

"Shut up Kuroo, you're drunk." The libero sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. The other Nekoma players tried to keep their sniggering to a minimum as Kuroo leaned heavily on Kenma and tried to convince his team mom that he was totally sober.

"'m not though."

"You just waltzed in here declaring yourself 'the neko king'! Sit down and drink some water before I--"

A shriek from the other room halted Yaku's rant, the others had returned from their night out and something had clearly gone wrong as there was a _lot_ of squabbling occurring. Kuroo was all set to barge in there and investigate but a death glare from his libero changed his mind, that and Kenma stating he'd let the other cuddle him if he sat down and shut up. Yaku sighed heavily as he went to find out what the hell was going on, he had figured that Bokuto and the other captains had snuck off to do _something_ \- pretty obvious that it was drinking and he'd be giving Kuroo an ass-whooping the next day over it - but he didn't know where they were.

"Alright what's going on?" He sighed as he opened the door. Suga looked caught between startled by his presence and thankful for it. Yaku raised an eyebrow at the noticeable bare room and the Karasuno first year duo bickering about something he didn't care to know about.

"Oh Yaku, uh well we just got back and there seems to be a lack of bedding." Suga smiled, still remaining calm despite the very obvious chaos. "You wouldn't happen to know anything?"

As much as Yaku would've liked to take credit for it, he had been in the other room the entire time with his team and not really heard anything. "I know the captains are off getting drunk, Kuroo didn't say anything about stealing Karasuno's bedding."

"Wait, if Kuroo is back then where's Daichi?"

Yaku shrugged. "Kenma dragged Kuroo back because apparently he started hugging that Akashi kid and Kise said--"

"Kise-senpai? Where is he?" Hinata interrupted, Yaku sighed slightly. "And Kenma? They didn't come with us to eat."

"I dunno, Kenma mentioned Kise and Kasamatsu leaving before Kuroo but he didn't know where they went."

"Either way, we still need to find out where the futons went." Suga stated, looking out over the room of confused and slightly annoyed teenagers. "You reckon Fukurodani pranked us?"

It certainly wasn't beyond the bounds of possibility but the other team wasn't really one to involve themselves without Bokuto's erratic behaviour. Yaku shook his head as he started helping Suga check the various storage closets, they found a few of the futons but there was a distinct lack of pillows. Hinata was now rambling about how if it wasn't Fukurodani and it wasn't Nekoma then the school _must_ be haunted, in turn making Asahi nervous and Midorima scoff as Tanaka recounted how earlier in the training camp they mistook Noya for a ghost because they hadn't seen his hair non-spiked.

"Will you quit it? The only ghost we have is Kuroko--wait where is he?" Kagami sighed, wanting to immediately shut down any talk of ghosts.

"Still with Bokuto I think." Yaku shrugged. "I dunno where they are, they just disappeared."

" A better question is, where are the pillows?" Tsukishima sighed. "Surely that's more important?"

There was a pause between them all as Suga and Yaku exchanged a glance. The futons that had been found were laid out again as crazy theories were banded around by the second years.

"Hey, maybe the girls took them to have one of those sexy pillow fights?" Tanaka suggested, leaning on Noya's shoulder with a small grin.

"Get your mind out of the gutter." Ennoshita chided, clipping his ear in warning.

"But maybe he's right?" Noya objected. "Just imagine--

"And do _you_ want to be the one to go and find out?"

"Dude no, Riko would literally kill you." Kagami intervened. "She's not above physical violence."

"I got it, we'll send Suga-san! They can't be mad at him." Noya declared.

The co-captain hadn't actually heard the suggestion but sensing his teammates looking at him made him wish he had. Yaku put his hands up in defence and stated he ought to find out if Kuroo had settled down yet before leaving. Asahi offered Suga a gentle pat on the shoulder in comfort as Noya and Tanaka bounded up to the other and declared he should be the one to go and ask the girls if they knew anything about the disappearing pillows. At first Suga flat out declined, not really believing Kiyoko and Yachi would be behind this but then reconsidering when Kagami informed him that it was entirely possible that Riko and Momoi were really the ones behind it.

"But be prepared to be murdered if Riko answers." Kagami shrugged, glancing at Kuroko who was tapping away on his phone. "Can't speak for Momoi though."

Suga sighed. He firmly told the collection of first and second years that Ennoshita and Asahi were in charge whilst he was gone and that he wanted everyone to be ready to sleep by the time he got back, no exceptions. Sliding the door closed behind him, he let out another sigh. Briefly wondering where the hell Daichi was and what kind of craziness had happened without him being there, he was slightly bummed out that he wasn't able to attend this gathering but _someone_ had to take charge of the team. He hadn't seen Daichi drunk before and wondered what he was like, it was clear that Kuroo was a loud and 'weird' drunk and he was willing to bet money that Bokuto was the same.

The hallway was quiet, he could hear the murmurs from Nekoma's room and the distinct 'Kuroo I swear to god shut up' that was Yaku and the vice-captain trying not to get mad at their own captain. Fukurodani’s room was quieter, hushed conversation which indicated Bokuto wasn't in there drifted out the half open door. Suga poked his head into the room and asked them if they had either seen his captain or heard about this pillow theft. They shook their heads and offered to help him search but he declined, there was no sense in being a burden to them.

It was late, that much he knew as he passed along a walkway that overlooked a courtyard, the moon wasn't full but it was still bright in the night sky. The coaches were staying in rooms across the courtyard from them all so there was little to no chance that they had heard or seen anything - especially with the very public knowledge that they were all getting acquainted over drinks themselves. The girls however were now staying in a room just at the end of the hallway, far enough away to not be disturbed by the stupidity of the boys but close enough for comfort's sake.

He steeled himself as he reached the closed door, a paper sign read 'Manager's room - knock and wait or else'. He thought about maybe texting Kiyoko instead but discarded that idea as he was here now and might as well just get on with it. He knocked three times and stepped back, shoving his hands in the pockets of his shorts out of habit. There was a brief pause before the door opened a tiny bit, pink eyes regarded him in curiosity before the door opened wider and the girl slipped out.

"Hey Suga-san." She smiled, it didn't escape his notice how she was wearing clothing that showed off her ample chest and smooth legs. "What's up?"

He swallowed. "Well this is going to sound crazy but the pillows from Karasuno's room have disappeared and no-one really knows where they are." He smiled, rubbing the back of his neck and tugging at the ends of his hair. "Have you seen or heard anything weird this evening?"

Momoi gave nothing away as she put a finger to her chin in thought. "Um, we know the captains were getting drunk somewhere. I heard Kise and Kasa stumbling around, oh and that Kuroo guy yelling about how unfair Kenma was for 'being no fun'."

Suga rolled his eyes slightly. "Do you know where they are? I need to retrieve Daichi anyway."

She raised an eyebrow, taking note of how the third year seemed to focus very quickly on the captain rather than the pillow plight. "Hm, well they're probably on this floor somewhere as this is the only floor we've all been given access to. Although they may have gotten access to another room somewhere else..."

"I see, well thanks for your help Momoi-san." Suga smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow." He waved as he set off back down the hallway.

Momoi watched him go with an amused smile on her face before slipping back into the room. Yachi giggled as Momoi closed the door and turned back to the pile of pillows in the corner of the room.

"You think they'll catch on?" Momoi asked Riko surveyed the pile.

"If they don't then they don't deserve them." The other replied with a shrug.

Kiyoko shook her head as she laughed quietly. "I feel a bit bad for Suga, he's trying so hard."

"Psh, please. Boy needs an excuse to go looking for his unofficial boyfriend." Momoi hummed. "What better excuse than 'all our freshmen's pillows disappeared'?"

"Anyone would think you're a matchmaker Satsuki." Riko sighed. "So how do you propose on getting Aomine and Sakurai together?"

"Oh I have a great plan for that, don't you worry Riko-chan~"

 

* * *

 

 

Daichi wasn't sure he had seen - or rather heard - Bokuto be so quiet, since Kuroo's departure from the group Akaashi had managed to get the other to calm down to the extent that Bokuto was now resting his head in the setter's lap. Aomine and Kuroko were debating who out of all the miracles who was the most difficult drunk to deal with.

The drinking for the most part had stopped, Akashi was beginning to fall asleep which was prompting the rest of them to consider retreating back to their rooms. Bokuto was letting Akaashi run his fingers through his hair and simply listening to the conversation, the setter seemed more than content to sit there all night.

The door opening cut the conversation short, Suga raised an eyebrow as Daichi's gaze met his.

"Hey Koushi, uh you wanna join us?" The captain asked.

Suga offered a smile but shook his head. "No, actually I was wondering if any of you knew why all of the pillows in our room disappeared whilst we were out?"

"Eh? Pillows? Did you ask the girls--" Aomine started.

"Yes and they said they knew...well they said they hadn't heard anything weird. I didn't want to outright accuse them." Suga replied.

"Psh, I'll go ask. You just got played big time senpai." Aomine smirked. "You're too nice for your own good. Oi Tetsu, you coming?"

"I'll decline Aomine-kun, I'll make sure Akashi-kun gets back to his room safely."

Aomine nodded and left ahead of them, Kuroko slowly eased Akashi to his feet and coaxed him out of the room, leaving the Fukurodani duo with Daichi and Suga. The Karasuno captain rubbed his face as Suga asked if it was a good night for them, Bokuto laughed slightly as he started recounting Kuroo's interesting topic of discussion, Akaashi remained quiet as he watched Daichi's cheeks redden at Kuroo's attempt to hit on him. The setter didn't miss how Suga's cheeks tinted pink either.

"Well, sounds eventful. So where are Kise and Kasamatsu? They're not in any of the rooms."

"Oh I suggested they find a broom closet--"

"Much to Kasa's embarrassment." Akaashi added.

Suga pinched the bridge of his nose. "Oh-kay. Anyway, we're still missing all the pillows so do you want to come and help resolve that Daichi?" He asked, though it wasn't really a question as he placed his hands on his hips and raised an eyebrow at the captain. "I left Asahi in charge of them so god knows what's happened since I left."

Daichi's eyes gave Suga the once-over, still slightly tipsy as he took in his best friend's slim but firm figure and soft face. "I-uh sure."

Bokuto smiled. "We'll clear up here Sawamura, you go and sort out your team."

Akaashi snorted slightly but nodded in confirmation. Daichi nodded back and got to his feet, the room was spinning slightly but he shook it off as he followed Suga out of the room and into the hallway lit by moonlight. Even though they were several feet away, they could hear Hinata and Kageyama bickering in the room at the other end of the hallway. As they started to walk back in silence, Daichi's sense of balance took a tumble and he ended up leaning on Suga for support, inadvertently burying his face in the other's neck.

"...are you okay?" Suga whispered, arm coming around the other's waist to try and support him further, he had to crane his neck to whisper in Daichi's ear which also meant his lips brushed the other's cheek.

The captain could only manage to nod, feeling Suga's warm breath against his skin and tender touch on his waist making his chest implode. It was hardly a secret anymore that he had a fondness for the other, he had confided in Asahi once or twice but the other third year wasn't the most helpful. He had thought about asking Kiyoko for advice but she was so close to Suga that he thought his setter would find out and be disgusted.

"We'll walk slowly yeah? Don't worry, I've got you." Suga continued, coaxing him to walk forward. "I'll sort out the team, I'll just drop you off at Nekoma's room and ask Yaku to--"

"N-No, Koushi I..." Daichi's words died in his mouth, although the other seemed to understand what he wanted.

"Okay then, I'll look after you." He smiled to himself.

When they got closer to Nekoma's room, Ennoshita appeared in the doorway to Karasuno's room, he took one look at the pair and nodded, understanding that his small issue could wait. He closed the door quietly and turned back to the carnage of the room, they had found some spare pillows in one of the broom closets with the help of Fukurodani's libero but had nowhere near enough for everyone. They chose to give the spare pillows to their guests, meaning Murasakibara could finally stop grumbling to Himuro and just sleep through the chattering of Hinata and Takao.

Tanaka surveyed the room with him, Ennoshita wasn't sure why the other was suddenly acting more mature but he wasn't going to question it in that moment. Noya was being coaxed to calm down by Asahi giving him a shoulder massage, much to the envy of Hinata who also wanted one but no-one was going to give him one, Kageyama remarked that he'd never sit still long enough to have one and that set off another petty squabble.

"You think they'll ever chill out?" Tanaka asked quietly.

"You're asking me? Surely you're the one who knows more about that."

The second year laughed slightly. "Sure you got no idea captain?"

"Quit calling me that, I'm not captain yet." Ennoshita sighed.

Tanaka gave him a softer smile. "What can I say, you carry yourself like one. And besides, I can be your co-captain."

Ennoshita raised an eyebrow. Tanaka wasn't really one to be subtle about things, but the idea of the other being his co-captain the following year certainly popped a few other ideas into his mind, especially given how he had just seen their current captain and co-captain in the hallway.

"I'll debate it." Ennoshita replied finally, returning the soft smile. "Now, we should probably sort out freshmen out."

Hinata was quietened down by Ennoshita offering to give him a shoulder massage whilst Kageyama was told to quit creating unnecessary conflict. Tsukishima was too engrossed in his music to really care about anything else but when Yamaguchi sat next to him and rested his head on the other's shoulder, the taller male snapped out of his thoughts and offered to let his friend listen to music. Yamaguchi declined, stating he was tired and just wanted a comfortable pillow.

Himuro and Takao started playing cards with Kagami, waiting patiently for Kise and Kuroko to return before settling down to sleep. Midorima found himself sat next to Asahi as Noya started to fall asleep under the third year's touch, no words were exchanged between them but the first year silently took mental notes on how quickly the third year could put Noya at complete ease, how much trust the two reportedly had both on and off court. He almost wished that he could mimic the actions with someone.

The group had been quiet for a while when Aomine opened the door, he was followed by Sakurai and Furihata both carrying several pillows each. He explained that the girls had taken them for one reason or another but that he had gotten them back. When asked why Suga hadn't been successful he stated that the co-captain had other things to worry about. Aomine finished dishing out the pillows and smiled at Sakurai, ruffling his hair as he thanked the other for helping him collect them all. It wasn't long before Kuroko returned, delivering the news that Akashi was now in the other room almost fast asleep and that Kise was 'somewhere' with Kasamatsu, prompting more questions that the shadow refused to answer.

With the pillows now back where they should be, Aomine stated he was going to turn in for the night and also check on Akashi. Ennoshita caught him just as he was about to leave and quietly told him not to question Suga's presence in the other room, Aomine raised an eyebrow but complied. When he entered Nekoma's room, the lights were dimmed and most of the other volleyball team were in various stages of falling asleep. He nodded in greeting to the ones who acknowledged his presence and made a beeline for his former captain, Akashi was led on his back but didn't seem to be asleep.

"You okay?" Aomine murmured, sitting beside him. "That was your first night drinking wasn't it?"

Akashi snorted slightly. "I am fine, thank you for your concern."

Aomine could tell the other wasn't going to reveal any sign of weakness in front of Nekoma, but he had an ace up his sleeve. "I told Furi about everything, he found it quite amusing. Kept saying 'oh I wish Sei had invited me.' and crap like that."

In the dimness of the room, Akashi's cheeks flushed slightly. "I suppose next time I'll allow it, knowing how the others act now."

"Yeah, we could make it more fun too..." Aomine sighed, glancing over his shoulder towards where Daichi was led down with his head on Suga's lap. The captain seemed fast asleep so the setter didn't really need to remain there but he was anyway. For all his reported obliviousness, Aomine could tell there was something else going on between the two of them. He shuffled over to his futon and led on top of the blankets, sinking into his thoughts about his own love life - or lack of it - and what to do about it. He didn't really swing either way when it came to guys or girls, he just liked people individually for different reasons, it was well reported that him and Momoi were rumoured to be a thing but they never were. The truth was he hadn't actually been in a steady relationship at all, he kind of wanted to know what it felt like but knew that his reputation as an arrogant asshole put a lot of people off. He just needed to find someone who knew him better than most.

 

* * *

 

 

Akaashi finally put the last few pieces of trash into a bin, Bokuto was in a very lethargic state but in some ways the younger male preferred it this way. The leftover alcohol was stowed away in a cabinet and the room set back to how it was before they arrived. It was getting late and Akaashi was more than set to crawl into his futon and not get up until noon, Bokuto seemed less than happy about moving though.

"But Akaashi...I'm too tired." He complained as Akaashi declared they could leave now.

"If you want to sleep on the floor up here then be my guest Bokuto-san."

There was a pause as Bokuto sat up and rubbed his eye. "Keiji~ You wouldn't leave your poor boyfriend up here alone would you?"

The setter sighed slightly, the use of his first name making his usual facade waver. He glanced over his shoulder at the captain with a small smile. "Considering everyone practically knows we're a couple now, I suppose it wouldn't hurt for you to share my futon..."

That perked Bokuto up considerably. "Really Keiji? Like, really _really_?"

"We're staying with Nekoma anyway, it's not the end of the world if our team finds out but I'd rather not--"

The other was already on his feet taking Akaashi's hand and tugging him towards the door. "I love you so much Keiji."

"I-I love you too..." Akaashi mumbled, cheeks reddening considerably. "Just keep it down Koutarou. And we should check Kise and Kasa made it back to their rooms first..."

"Yes, yes of course we will~"

Bokuto was almost wide awake again at the prospect of sharing a bed with his lover in public. It wasn't like they hadn't shared beds at each other's houses but due to Akaashi's strict 'no pda' policy in order to keep the team from gossiping about them, they had hardly even held hands in front of anyone. He wouldn't say he was the protective lover, just eager to show off his partner and show off how lucky he was.

They locked the room and paused to listen for any sounds of squabbling, Karasuno's room was quiet as they neared it but there were still voices coming from it so _someone_ was awake. Akaashi checked in on their own team and told them he and Bokuto were staying with Nekoma again, most of them were asleep anyway. Bokuto was already stripping off his shirt when Akaashi realised they were missing a person from the room.

"Has Kasamatsu not returned?" He asked Kenma, who was currently being spooned by a slightly snoring Kuroo.

"Nope." Kenma replied, carrying on with his game as his best friend buried his face in his neck. "Sugawara was here briefly, making sure Sawamura was okay but he's gone now."

"I'll see if Kise has made it back yet, Bokuto-san stupidly suggested the two go to a broom closet."

"I am aware." Kenma nodded. "I have not heard either of them since."

Akaashi was in two minds about it; one was to let them do whatever as they were guests but the other was that if the coaches caught them then all hell would break loose. He left the room with a murmured 'I'll be right back' and quietly opened the door of Karasuno's room, Suga was still awake but most of the others - mainly first years - were fast asleep.

"You seen Kasamatsu?" He whispered when the other setter glanced up.

"No? You seen Kise?"

Akaashi shook his head. "God damn Bokuto-san suggesting they find a broom closet..." He uttered, making Suga chuckle slightly.

"You love him really, or so I've heard."

The younger male's blush came back as Suga smiled. "...yes. Anyway, I'll go and find them."

In a way Akaashi was happy to be looking for the duo, it gave him a chance to clear his head a little. The night's events had revealed something to him that he hadn't considered much. Kuroo was clearly in need of someone. The Nekoma captain didn't voice it per say, but in his actions Akaashi had seen something that reminded him of how Bokuto had been before they started dating. It was obvious that Kuroo wasn't going to jeopardise his friendship with Kenma by forcing him into something, but it had gotten Akaashi thinking nonetheless.

Bokuto's suggestion - albeit cut off by Akaashi himself - to invite him into their relationship for one night, wasn't the worst idea ever. He was pretty sure the alcohol was making it seem like a good idea but the more he thought about it, the more he could see it working. Bokuto and Kuroo were best friends already, Akaashi was already around Kuroo almost as much as he was around his own boyfriend. It wouldn't be much of a stretch, would it?

He was jarred from his thoughts by a door opening just down the hallway from him. A breathless giggle bounced off the walls as a familiar blond teen was coaxed out of a storage closet by Kasamatsu. Akaashi could tell they hadn't done anything too scandalous but their clothing was a little out of place and he could already see a darkening mark on the third year's exposed shoulder.

"You actually took Bokuto-san up on his suggestion?" Akaashi remarked with a slight smirk.

"Eh? Oh Akaashi it's you." Kasamatsu seemed considerably more relaxed than before and the setter didn't need to think too much into why. "Shit is everyone asleep?"

Akaashi shook his head. "Most of the first years have tired themselves out, Kuroo-san and Sawamura-san are both asleep too but the rest of us are still awake."

Kise draped himself over Kasamatsu's shoulders and pressed a tired kiss to his neck, the captain didn't try and fight him off but instead gave Akaashi a sympathetic smile. "Sorry for uh...you know, actually taking him up on his suggestion--"

"Don't worry about it, Bokuto has some weird suggestions but they can be good ideas sometimes..." Akaashi cut in. "I would advise that you both get back to your rooms soon though."

The second year simply left it at that and returned to Nekoma's room without another word to the couple. Bokuto was led in his futon looking dejected but at the sight of his setter, the captain smiled and watched him approach in the dimness. No words were said as Akaashi changed into more comfortable clothes to sleep in and then slipped into the small collection of bedding. Bokuto wrapped a strong arm around him and pulled him close, nuzzling the back of his neck as Kuroo's light snores filled the silence. They were both vaguely aware of Kasamatsu returning and getting into bed without fuss, but as more and more of their roommates fell asleep, Akaashi's thought process whirled into life again. He needed to get a second opinion on this from someone who wasn't an interested party.

 


	6. Hangovers Galore

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "that was my first kiss..."
> 
> "Mine too."

Chapter Six  
Hangovers galore

  
When Yaku had woken up, he took one look at the futon Kuroo was sharing with Kenma and sighed slightly. His dumbass captain was definitely going to be hungover when he woke up and the Nekoma mom really had no desire to deal with it. The rest of the team - barring Kenma who had passed out with his games console still in his hand - were gradually waking up and sooner or later would demand to go and get breakfast.

He slipped out of his futon and quietly ascertained who was awake, whispering that he was going to get dressed and then find out what the deal was with food that morning. Kai, the vice-captain, nodded at him before rolling over and going back to sleep some more, sometimes Yaku thought that he was actually called upon more to be Kuroo's second in command but alas, he was a libero and the rules forbid him being given the actual title. Nevertheless, he collected his bag and set off for the bathroom, debating when to broach the subject of showering to the other captains, they'd have to open up the gym locker rooms for that.

He was making his way back from the restroom when he encountered Furihata. Yaku vaguely remembered that the brunet was staying in his room but had been so quiet he hardly registered his presence. He smiled and paused to ask what was wrong, the other seemed a little worked up about something.

"Nothing, I mean, well it's something but I don't know--" Furihata babbled, prompting Yaku to put his hand up to stop him talking.

"Calm down, just say it. I won't judge, after all I've dealt with Kuroo for three years so I doubt it's anything I've not dealt with before."

Furihata smiled slightly but still seemed nervous about coming clean. "Uh, what do...I mean if you liked someone but they were hopelessly out of your league what would you do?"

That was a question Yaku hadn't anticipated. "Uh, I mean the only thing you can do is ask them out and see what happens. I'm guessing you have a particular person in mind?"

The brunet blushed and averted his gaze. "I-I mean kind of. I'm also asking on behalf of a friend, we're both having the same problem."

Yaku raised an eyebrow, ignoring the fact he was having his own problems in that department, although it was a little different than the other being out of his league. "Well good luck, to both of you. Now, I'm taking most of my team down to breakfast, you wanna tag along?"

Furihata shook his head. "No I'm going to wait for the miracles, I know Mura won't wanna miss breakfast and he'll demand Himuro goes with him, that'll prompt Kagami and Kuroko--"

"I get it, it's cool. You're a weird group but I get it." Yaku chuckled slightly. "See ya around Furihata."

"Thanks senpai."

The libero nodded as he went on his way back to his room. The rest of his team were awake now, Yamamoto and Inouka were trying to keep Lev from waking up Kenma - that in itself was a death wish - whilst the upperclassmen just watch in amusement. He quickly hissed at Lev to stop and then, in a more calm manner, stated that they'd have to make their own food as the coaches weren't up yet. At the mention of food, the first years brightened up and Yaku had to remind them that there were people still sleeping in the room and to get excited when they were in the cafeteria.

It didn't take much persuading to get them out of the room, they weren't even alone in the cafeteria for long when Kiyoko and Yachi showed up. Yaku felt the need to strangle Yamamoto before Kai restrained him so the libero could talk to Karasuno's managers in peace.

"Didn't expect to see you both down here." He said, nodding back to his team. "Sorry about Yamamoto."

"No, it's fine." Kiyoko smiled. "We're just getting a head start on our team. How are the captains by the way after last night?"

Yaku groaned and rubbed his forehead. "Kuroo's gonna be hungover, dunno about Daichi. You want any help with cooking?"

Yachi and Kiyoko exchanged a glance. "If you're willing, it would make everything a little easier."

"Senpai can you tell Lev to stop looking like a lost puppy without you here!" Inouka called from the table where the team were eating together.

Yaku didn't even look over his shoulder as he sighed and called back, "Lev, come and be useful for once.".

He was sure he'd regret asking the first year for help cooking, but if it stopped him trying to interrupt anyway then Yaku could deal with it. He actually found the other's enthusiasm endearing, even if he needed to reign it in a little. He was thankful Kuroo wasn't awake, he didn't need the captain making remarks again.

 

* * *

 

 

Hinata was loving this extended vacation, it was just the right balance of volleyball and general fun to keep his spirits high. Karasuno's recent loss seemed so far away as he woke up in a room full of friends both old and new. He wanted to play volleyball again, even if it was just a fun game with Kuroo and Bokuto and maybe even Kenma, but he was aware that playing sports was the last thing on some of their minds as he rolled over and was met with the sight of Kageyama _staring_ at him.

Since their match with Seijou they hadn't spent much time together outside of practice, although over the course of the training camp they managed to cooperate enough to perfect the quick-strike. It still hadn't quite cleared the air between them and it was getting harder to ignore just how often Kageyama crossed his mind for reasons _other_ than volleyball. He didn't say anything as he regarded Kageyama's slightly startled stare, he had no idea what time it was but he was pretty damn sure everyone else was still asleep. The setter too, was silent for a few moments. His eyebrows furrowed as a slight reddish tint crept over his cheeks, he quickly tugged the blanket up to cover most of his face, much to Hinata's puzzlement.

"Kageyama...what's wrong?" He breathed, he wasn't a complete idiot, there was clearly something up with his teammate. "Are you sick?"

"Shut up baka." Kageyama uttered, avoiding looking at Hinata. "You just startled me."

"How long have you been awake?"

The other snorted. "Not long. Everyone else is asleep so don't even think about talking."

Hinata sighed, rolling onto his back and folding his hands behind his head. Being quiet wasn't exactly his strong point but he did find it calming to be in a quiet room every now and then, well as quiet as it could be with the snores and heavy breathing coming from around them. He hadn't been in that position for long, staring at the bland ceiling in thought, when Kageyama sat up and caught his attention. It bothered him how _weird_ Kageyama was being, even for his standards. The loss to Oikawa must've really messed him up, it wasn't that Hinata _wasn't_ upset, he just knew that he'd have to push himself more and be better. However, it seemed that his setter was still dealing with some inner turmoil.

"Yo, do you wanna go and get a drink from a vending machine?" Hinata asked quietly, getting a seething glare from the other for seemingly no reason. The glare melted away and Kageyama nodded slightly, waiting for Hinata to get out of bed before standing up and slipping on his slippers.

The hallways were quiet, there were no sounds of life from the other rooms save for Kuroo's snoring. The two of them walked in silence down to where Nekoma's vending machines were, Hinata didn't really know what to say that wouldn't prompt a load of half-hearted insults. Kageyama's finger made a beeline for the milk carton selection, once he had the familiar box in his hand he seemed to relax a little, or at least enough for Hinata to poke the bear again.

"You seem off." He stated, realising dancing around the subject with the other would get him nowhere. "Are you still sore about losing to Oikawa-senpai?"

Kageyama's gaze fixed on the lit up display of the vending machine, he paused in his drinking to sigh slightly. "Why does it matter to you?"

"...well I'm your teammate, and friend."

"Friend?" Kageyama repeated, glancing at the shorter male. He found eyes that resembled the late summer sunset regarding him with honesty, an openness that seemed to give him the feeling that he wasn't just saying that to get information. No, Hinata meant it.

"Yeah, I mean I wish you wouldn't yell at me like you do but that's just how you are I guess..." Hinata trailed off, running a hand through his hair. "Anyway, so you _are_ still upset?"

"Well not everyone can bounce back immediately..." He finished the carton and immediately ordered another from the machine, noting the other's empty hands and ordering a third, tossing the spare at Hinata who nearly dropped it, a small smile tugged at Kageyama's lips as he saw the surprise in the other's face. There were a few moments when Hinata seemed to accept his comment for what it was, however there was always something going on inside the other first year's mind.

"You can tell me, I won't say anything to our senpais. If you're--" Hinata stopped himself as he noted the other's change in demeanour, Kageyama's free hand twitched as he slowly clenched it into a fist. He didn't feel threatened, this was something different that he had only seen once or twice before. "...Kageyama?"

The taller male inhaled deeply, holding his breath for a few seconds before exhaling. "Do you still think I act like the King of the court?"

"Huh?" Hinata cocked his head to the side in confusion. "Well kinda but that's just your personality, you just need to work on teamwork--"

"We perfected the quick strike, yet I still feel like we're not there yet." Kageyama's voice dropped to a whisper, almost as if he was no longer talking to Hinata but to himself.

He didn't notice the other stepping closer until he felt a hand take his, he snapped out of all thoughts of volleyball and regarded Hinata with an alarmed look, the amber eyes met his gaze with a defiant vibe. Kageyama was aware of the silence and also the twitching in his fingers as they subconsciously linked with Hinata's. He had no idea what he was thinking but the tender touch eased his worries slightly.

"There's always stuff to work on, beating yourself up won't help. You can apologise as much as you want but--"

"I'm not apologising dumbass..." Kageyama breathed, a slightly forced laugh breaking the silence as he debated buying another drink whilst they were stood there. "I said I won't throw any more tosses that I have to apologize for."

A soft pressure on Kageyama's arm brought his gaze away from the lit up vending machine, Hinata pressed his forehead against the other's shoulder as he lightly squeezed Kageyama's hand. "So what are you doing? If you're not apologising then what's holding you back?"

The question didn't make sense to the setter, he wasn't holding back from anything as far as he knew. Well, there was one thing but there was no way Hinata had picked up on _that_ , or at least that what he hoped. Just the thought made Kageyama want to headbutt the machine. Hinata let go of his hand after a few moments of silence, glancing up without a word but his expression said it all.

"H-Holding me back from what?" Kageyama asked, deep down he knew Hinata had indeed picked up on it. Heck, the miracles and their friends had picked up on it after only two days and he was pretty sure the entire team knew too. He wanted to believe he could hide it, he wanted to believe he could ignore the pang of jealously that ripped through him whenever he saw others getting close to Hinata, when they could easily strike up a conversation and get him to smile and laugh, when Suga could set the perfect play for him during practice without even having to have the bond they did.

There was a pause before Hinata smiled slightly, the amber eyes regarding him with mild amusement but something far more troubling, it was almost disappointment. Kageyama had seen the same look enough times in practice to know he had just fucked up big time.

"Tobio..." He sighed, averting his gaze. "I get it. You just don't want me hanging around with our rivals."

"Eh? What?"

"I just thought there was another reason for giving Kuroo-senpai and Bokuto-senpai glares, or acting weird whenever I practised with Suga-san." Hinata continued, stepping back and shrugging, still avoiding Kageyama's gaze.

"Wait I didn't--"

"I guess Kenma was wrong after all--"

Kageyama ditched his milk carton and grabbed Hinata's face, albeit a little roughly but it got the other to stop talking and look at him. They regarded each other with startled stares once more. The silence of the building only making the lack of talking more noticeable.

"What are you talking about d-dumbass?" Kageyama whispered, almost not believing that he was about to do this without any thought. "You hardly gave me anything to go on!"

Hinata's bottom lip quivered slightly as he stood frozen, eyes wide with panic and confusion.

"I mean--you just went on about me being able to confide in you but it sounds like you want to tell _me_ something."

The smaller male didn't answer, he seemed completely thrown off but at the same time didn't show any sign of wanting to leave. Kageyama was trying to figure out how to get the other to say what he was really thinking when it hit him; Hinata knew that he had it bad for him, he knew because of all the weird behaviour he had listed of and apparently something Kenma said.

He knew, and he wanted Kageyama to admit it.

"Shoyo, look, I--" The setter cursed himself for not being able to word his thought process. He partly blamed the abruptness of the conversation but he mostly blamed Hinata's rosy cheeks and slightly trembling lips for making him look more lost than ever.

"Tobio, you don't need to say it...." Hinata murmured, covering Kageyama's hands with his own. "I-I don't mind."

"Psh, you've been hanging around Suga-senpai too often..." The other sighed, feeling a burst of courage unexpectedly and bringing their faces closer, he hesitated when he heard Hinata's breath hitch. It was an awkward angle but he followed through anyway, pressing his lips against Hinata's. The other let out a small whimper of surprise - or possibly disbelief - as he returned the kiss.

Kageyama didn't expect Hinata's lips to be that soft, he knew his own were slightly dry and chapped but that didn't seem to put the other off as he felt a hand on the back of his head keeping him in place. His heart was racing, his mind lay in a ditch somewhere as his chest tightened and cheeks reddened at the entire situation. It wasn't the most romantic of kisses but neither of them cared, not until Kageyama's neck started hurting from the angle and he pulled away.

They regarded each other silently, both rosy-cheeked and panting slightly.

"Was...that what you were talking about?" Kageyama asked quietly, trying not to sound like he didn't enjoy the last few moments of his life, he _definitely_ enjoyed them.

Hinata nodded slightly. "I didn't expect you to...do that."

"Oh really." Kageyama snorted.

"Bakageyama, that was my first kiss."

"Mine too."

"What! No! You had to have had one already?" Hinata's voice suddenly jumped in volume and Kageyama wanted to hit him, yet at the same time he was somewhat smug that Hinata thought it wasn't his first kiss, clearly he had done something right. He couldn't resist grinning slightly.

"Shut up, just don't go blabbing about this okay? Just...take it easy."

"You don't want to tell the team?" Hinata was back to his slightly clueless self. "Why?"

Kageyama wanted to scream. "Well for a start, we're on vacation in Nekoma's school so Kuroo and Bokuto will never let us hear the end of it. Secondly can we just keep this between us for a few precious days?"

Hinata seemed confused but nodded. "So does that mean we're--"

"I said to take it easy." He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Don't you think there'd be a million and one questions? And how do you think Tsukishima is going to react? I hate the bastard enough already let alone giving him another reason to sneer at me. And god help us if those idiot captain friends of yours find out--"

"Tobio, I think you're over thinking it."

"And that too- don't call me that in front of everyone!"

Hinata rolled his eyes, grabbing Kageyama by the front of his shirt and pulling him down again, pressing more confident lips against the other's to shut him up. Kageyama still wasn't used to this concept that Hinata had feelings for him and he certainly wasn't used to this kissing concept either but he took the hint and stopped making demands, focusing instead on the lips against his.

 

* * *

 

 

Akaashi stirred when he heard Kuroo groaning. It was mid-morning and the rest of the Nekoma team were absent, the setter guessed Yaku had taken them to get breakfast already. The other occupants of the room were still asleep, although it seemed that Furihata and Aomine were both gone too, not that Akaashi was particularly concerned about them.

"My head hurts Kenma..." Kuroo whined.

"It's your own fault Kuro." Kenma replied, he sounded half asleep still and Akaashi could tell he wasn't happy about his whining friend.

Bokuto was still in a deep slumber, heavy arm wrapped around Akaashi's waist and keeping him firmly pressed back against his chest. It was warm under the blankets and Akaashi could feel sleep edging at his thoughts as he lay there in Bokuto's hold. He was reminded of the first time they shared a bed; waking up to find himself curled into Bokuto's chest and being held in a close embrace, feeling content and safe.

Whilst deep in his thoughts, Kuroo had rolled over and ended up facing Akaashi, slightly startling the other but he could see the other's mind slowly ticking in his hungover state.

"You'll give me sympathy won't you Akaashi~" Kuroo whined again, peering through his fringe as Kenma stole the blankets to cocoon himself in warmth.

"Not likely." Akaashi replied, tensing up slightly as he felt Bokuto shift behind him. The captain nuzzled his neck and lazily pressed his lips to the shell of his ear. It was a common occurrence when they slept together at home but having Kuroo watching was a little odd for Akaashi, especially knowing he was blushing very heavily.

"Mornin' Keiji..." Bokuto sighed, his eyes slipping open slowly. He quickly noted Kuroo's presence and smirked. "Oh hey Kuroo."

"Sup." Kuroo groaned.

"I'm great, you're hungover." He stated with a triumphant grin. "And I was only trying to get Akashi drunk last night."

"Yeah yeah whatever...Kenma's being mean to me."

"You deserve it." Kenma grumbled from his blanket pile.

Bokuto laughed, it was a loud laugh that made Akaashi wince and someone from the other side of the room groan.

"Sounds like Sawamura is awake." Akaashi sighed.

"Oi Daichi, are you also hungover?" Bokuto called, a pillow came out of nowhere and hit him, making Kuroo burst out in a fit of laughter as Akaashi jumped out of his skin. The source of the pillow wasn't their rival at all, the Rakuzan captain regarded the upperclassmen with a tired glare as he walked out of the room.

"Well he's not a morning person is he?" Kenma mumbled.

"When you wake up to Bokuto's laughter, you're hardly a morning person." Akaashi remarked, gaining a pout from his boyfriend.

"You don't mean that Akaashi!"

Due to the sudden explosion of noise, the remaining sleeping residents of the room had woken up. Himuro chuckled as Murasakibara immediately complained about the loud captains and then the lack of food, Daichi rubbed his face and started recalling the night before, feeling his face reddening as he remembered his close call with Suga. Kasamatsu had already gotten up and was scowling at the mark on his shoulder, grumbling various threats about Kise as he found some clean clothes.

"Well now you've woken everyone up Bokuto...can we go and get breakfast?" Akaashi asked.

"Oh my god I could murder a coffee." Kuroo sighed.

"You don't drink coffee." Kenma stated.

"Kenma stop being mean to me!" Kuroo pined, rolling over and caging the other against the futon, well he would've been if there weren't several blankets between the two of them.

"Sheesh will you guys just get married already." Kasamatsu grumbled, regarding the four of them on his way past. "Or quit being so loud anyway, you're worse than my teammate."

"Kasa's grumpy cause he clearly didn't get laid." Bokuto raised an eyebrow at the mark on his shoulder. "Though you got something alright."

It was enough to send the third year away quicker than he intended, a furious blush on his face as he nearly slammed the door shut. Daichi sat up and gave the other captains a half-hearted glare, he felt like death but also slightly terrified at greeting his best friend that morning. He recalled that Akaashi and Bokuto weren't in the room when Suga stayed with him, for that he was thankful, but Kuroo and Kenma definitely were and he somewhat dreaded to find out what they remembered or overheard.

"Morning Sawamura." Bokuto greeted when he met the other's gaze.

"Hey..."

"Are you also hungover?"

"No? Just tired."

"Sugawara-san seemed concerned." Kenma's muffled voice came out.

"Oho ho?" Bokuto was far too happy after a night of drinking. "Do tell."

It prompted Kenma to poke his head out from his burrito of blankets. "He was sat by Sawamura for a while, just talking quietly and--"

The door opening interrupted Kenma's explanation, Momoi stood there and her gaze immediately settled on the only miracle left in the room.

"Mukkan! The others are waiting to eat downstairs, get up." She stated.

"Did you do the cooking?" The miracle mumbled, Himuro snorted as he stood up and pulled a jacket on before tossing another at Murasakibara.

"No...it was Kiyoko and Yachi. They made food for their team and then decided to cook for us too after half their team were still asleep."

"Oh...okay. I'll be down soon Sa-chin." Murasakibara sighed, slowly sitting up and waving half-heartedly towards the door. "Don't wait up."

Momoi rolled her eyes. "Don't take forever, Dai-chan's already complaining." She remarked, leaving abruptly.

Bokuto and Kuroo exchanged a glance as the remaining basketball players departed for breakfast, leaving them with only Daichi and their two setters. The Karasuno captain wasn't exactly being subtle about his reluctance to meet up with the rest of his team and it didn't take the other two very long to conclude why.

Kuroo was the first to move, even if his legs didn't totally agree with the idea and he ended up impersonating a new-born deer. He sat next to Daichi - or rather, feel onto the futon - and threw an arm over his shoulders. "So what happened Sawamura? You can tell me."

Bokuto chuckled as he nuzzled Akaashi's neck before moving over to join the other two. "Yeah, Sugawara seemed a little pissed at you."

"No he wasn't." Daichi sighed, deciding that if he had to talk to anyone about it then he supposed that these two wouldn't be the worst choices possible. "He helped me back here and stayed with me for a while..."

"Hmmm...so what's the problem?" Kuroo asked. "Sounds like you had him practically eating out of your hand."

The captain's cheeks flushed red as he opened his mouth to say something but thought better of it. Akaashi declared he was going to go and check on Fukurodani and Karasuno, dragging a somewhat reluctant Kenma with him. It was his way of saying 'have a private conversation whilst you can' to Bokuto and Kuroo.

Kenma was less than amused at being dragged out by his rival setter. He sighed as he followed Akaashi along the hall to the other volleyball team, sure enough Fukurodani were operating as usual without their captain and vice-captain. Karasuno, on the other hand, were a little more disjointed.

"You've not seen Hinata or Kageyama have you? Suga's gone to see if Kiyoko or Yachi have but they've just kinda disappeared." Ennoshita explained. Most of the team seemed less than worried and the miracles were nowhere to be seen."

"No..." Akaashi replied. "But have you checked the gym?"

"...why would we?"

"It's Hinata?"

Kenma cleared his throat loudly. "They'd need a key, which only Kuro and Kai have."

"Never mind then. I'm sure it's all okay. Have you checked with Kise?"

"That's what Suga's doing--"

Ennoshita was cut off by his phone ringing. He answered and let out a relieved sigh, telling the not-so-concerned team that Suga had found them and they'd be up shortly to collect everyone for breakfast. When he ended the call, the second year asked Akaashi about Daichi.

"...he's slightly hungover." The setter replied, it wasn't technically a lie.

"Oh? Uh I guess I'll send Suga to deal--"

"Not necessary. Kuroo and Bokuto are dealing with it."

"And that's meant to be comforting?" Kenma remarked, getting a small snort from Akaashi.

"Fine, I'll check on him on my way down. But don't make your team wait for him."

It seemed to appease Ennoshita enough, Akaashi sighed heavily as he told Kenma to go ahead and join the rest of his team. As they started going their separate ways down the hallway Akaashi suddenly had a thought occur to him.

"Wait, Kenma."

"What?" Kenma turned to look at him.

"...I need your opinion on something..." He said, not exactly used to asking the other for a favour.

"Can't you ask Bokuto or Kuro?" Kenma replied, eyes not giving anything away as he regarded Akaashi.

"It...involves them."

"Oh?"

"Can we find somewhere more private?"

Kenma thought for a second before nodding, gesturing for Akaashi to follow him.

 


	7. A rematch of sorts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'm gonna have to assign someone to personally train him at this rate."
> 
> "Hey what about Yaku?"
> 
> "I don't want my freshman _killed_ Bo." 
> 
> "I dunno man, I don't think Yaku would kill him, maybe maim or serious injure but not kill."

Chapter Seven

A rematch of sorts

 

It was noted by many of the students, how Karasuno's captain didn't join them for breakfast. Nekoma didn't say anything, their setter was missing but Kuroo had simply shrugged and said Kenma wasn't a morning person and the team should know that by now. Kiyoko and Suga asked both the captains _why_ Daichi didn't come down with them and Kuroo shrugged again before Bokuto said that Daichi felt really tired still.

The first years were far too engrossed in watching Murasakibara and Kagami having an unspoken eating contest. Himuro stayed silent as the two aces shovelled food into their mouths at impressive speeds, Aomine and Kise encouraged them, with Midorima trying not to show how interested he really was in the outcome. Akashi simply tried to ignore the lunacy and instead struck up a conversation with Kasamatsu about that day's activities, the other miracles had made it very clear that they wanted to prove a point to the volleyball players after their first day at the school.

"Tsk, you want to challenge them to a basketball game?" Kasamatsu remarked.

"I don't, I'll crush them all." Akashi stated as if it was a fact. "The others do. Aomine seems eager to show off as always and I think both you and I will agree that it would be entertaining to see how they react to Kuroko."

Kasamatsu snorted, casting a glance to the first years who were still in awe at the two aces' eating contest. "Well go and suggest it to one of those idiots in charge."

"I think they'll react better to you suggesting it." Akashi smiled slightly, he was kind of tired of being the one to take the lead, this was his vacation just as much as everyone else's. That and if he suggested it, they'd assume he wanted to take part, which he didn't. He had something else in mind.

Murasakibara won the amateur eating contest, Kagami groaned as Himuro patted his head sympathetically. Seizing the opportunity of having more or less everyone's attention in one place, Kasamatsu took Akashi's suggestion to heart and declared that after being forced to play volleyball because of Aomine's stupid challenge, he wanted to see if the others could rise to the challenge of taking on the miracles at their own game. Lev was actually the first one to ,agree to it, Kuroo simply laughed at first but soon agreed to take part too. It was all Hinata could do to not trip over his own feet when he jumped up and shouted he wanted to play, Kageyama sighed and told him he was probably too short but that didn't stop the other whatsoever.

"Well, I guess we better unlock the gym--" Kuroo started to say, realising that Kenma wasn't with him. "...well shit."

"Yeah he's usually down by now huh." Yaku hummed. "And where the hell is Akaashi?"

"Beats me." Bokuto shrugged, continuing to eat and his team didn't feel the need to challenge him.

"You don't know where your boyfriend is?" Kuroo asked. "Usually you're glued to him."

Bokuto paused in shovelling food into his mouth. "Eh, I mean he's probably comforting lovesick Sawamura. He's a total team mom like Yaku."

Yaku chose the wrong moment to take a drink, spluttering and setting his glass down firmly, blush evident on his cheeks as he regarded the rival captain with a glare. Kuroo broke into a fit of laughter as Lev tried to get the libero to repeat what had just been said. Kasamatsu rolled his eyes, Akashi was chuckling slightly at the loud volleyball table whilst the miracles were starting to get riled up at the idea of a game of basketball. It was all Riko and Momoi could do to restore order by threatening to hit Kagami with a frying pan if he didn't shut up and sit down.

Kuroo called upon his vice-captain to unlock the gym with his key whilst everyone got ready for the game, he also instructed someone from the miracles' posse to accompany him and help set up the court as necessary. It suddenly dawned on him that they probably ought to check in with the coaches, deciding to drag Bokuto with him and leaving everyone else to sort themselves out.

 

* * *

 

 

"No I think _I_ should be the captain." Aomine repeated, Kise looked mildly offended and Midorima pinched the bridge of his nose again as Takao cackled.

"You? The one who Imayoshi has to keep on a leash? Yeah right." Takao remarked.

"Will you quit it?" Aomine challenged, "and he doesn't keep me on a leash!"

"Ah you're right, that's Momoicchi~" Kise smirked, narrowly avoiding Aomine's fist as he tried to grab the other and prove a point.

"Have you picked your god damn team yet?" Kagami sighed.

"Shut up Bakagami!"

It said a lot, how the miracles couldn't decide who was going to be the captain in Akashi's absence. It wasn't really a detail they needed to fret over, it wasn't needed in a so-say 'friendly' match, but try telling the miracles that. Himuro and Kagami exchanged a glance as they waited for the prodigies to make their minds up, they were in a team with Kuroko, Kasamatsu and Murasakibara whilst the remaining miracles plus Takao and Sakurai were on the opposing team. They had decided to do it this way to give their hosts an idea of how good they were before they completely destroyed them.

Akashi and Furihata watched on from the sidelines with Momoi and Riko, whilst this was a friendly match there was a lot of potential for old rivalries to spark and it was going to be entertaining for Akashi to watch them all play again. The volleyball players were still trying to decide who was actually going to play the miracles, there were a few eager to show off but both Riko and Momoi had insisted that they watched first before volunteering to die. Eventually it was decided that Takao would assume the captaincy role, Kagami remarked loudly about how in the time they had taken to decide, he had grown a beard and Kasamatsu had graduated university. He was met with a kick to the back of the knee by the disgruntled third year and a laugh from Himuro.

Once all the bickering was put aside, Ennoshita was acquired to initiate the toss up, it was no surprise that Murasakibara won against Midorima. Despite the teams only playing together for the first time that day, the match was fast paced and a spectacle nonetheless. Kagami and Aomine were definitely out to settle a score, Midorima was reminded of his dislike for Murasakibara and Kise found it very odd to play against both his senpai and his lover. Kuroko for the most part, simply passed the ball around like he usually did, confusing his former teammates as well as their spectators who weren't clued in on just how effective he was on court. Hinata's eyes were wide saucers as he took in how such a short person in comparison to his opponents could run rings around them.

"Tetsu you bastard!" Aomine cussed as he found the ball no longer in his possession but instead in Himuro's and about to be shot into the basket no-one was really defending.

"Aomine-kun, have you really forgotten about my passing already?" The other replied with a smile that made Kagami trip over his own feet. Kise was caught between squealing at Kuroko actually smiling during a game and desperately trying to claw possession back.

Midorima huffed as Takao passed him the ball and set up for a three-point shot, Kasamatsu wasn't having any of it as he swapped places with Murasakibara and had the miracle bat the ball towards Kuroko. Kise had actually remembered how Kuroko's passes worked and managed to catch Himuro off guard enough to steal possession, passing to Aomine and gaining their first points.

The match continued like that for a while; each play leading to more half-hearted insults and bickering. They took a small break for water before resuming and getting into more heated plays that led to Aomine nearly strangling Kise for not passing to him. Sakurai, who had tried to remain as out of the spotlight as possible with such temperamental people on his team, seemed to reach his limit and got between the two bickering miracles.

"D-Do I have to tell Imayoshi-senpai about your bad attitude again?" He asked Aomine, Kagami burst into laughter as Aomine seemed taken back by his teammate's sudden bravado. Momoi had to cup her hand over her mouth to stop herself from screaming, when Yachi and Kiyoko gave her a weird look, Riko had to explain what the big deal of Sakurai standing up to Aomine was.

"Uh...no." Aomine replied, averting his gaze. "It's fine, s-sorry Ryou."

Kise and Midorima exchanged a knowing glance, or rather Kise raised his eyebrow at Midorima and the other miracle shoved the basketball into Kise's hands with a grumbled 'I don't even want to know'. Takao clapped his hands a few times to get everyone's attention back to the game as Sakurai tried to ignore the heat in his cheeks and how Aomine had blatantly called him by his first name in front of everyone.

Once they were sure they got their point across, they drew the game to a close and reiterated the challenge to the volleyball players. There was the small issue that no-one knew any of the positions to Riko declared she was going to give them a crash course in it just as Suga had given a crash course in serving.

"So, first we have the point guards." She stated, dragging Furihata off the bench and by her side. "Usually the shortest player, has to be aware of everyone else on the court and shout out orders. A lot of captains are also point guards because of this but it's not necessary."

"And next is the power forward~" Momoi sang as she clung onto Aomine's arm. "The guy who drives through the team's defence and dunks--"

Aomine glared as Kise and Kagami both started dying in fits of giggles. It was short-lived as Riko grabbed Kise and carried on with her 'positions for dummies'. "Small forwards aren't as fast as their point guards but they're also not big enough to be centres. They're generally all-rounded players."

"And then we have the centre~" Momoi continued, pointing at Murasakibara. "The tallest player usually and ours is particularly lazy it seems."

"Too much effort." Murasakibara hummed, resting his head on top of Himuro's as he hugged the shooter from behind.

"Speaking of which." Momoi caught Himuro's eye. "The last position is shooting guard. They make all the fancy three-point shots and are one of the key defenders against the other shooters."

Hinata raised his hand, gaining a snigger from Tsukishima and a slight sigh from Kageyama. Riko asked him what his question was. "So what's Kuroko's position?"

The miracles exchanged a glance as Kuroko looked to Akashi for his official ruling. The Rakuzan captain sighed as he stood up. "Tetsuya doesn't have a set position. He's...an exception. If we were to attach a position to him it would be small forward, mainly because him and Ryouta subbed each other out during our middle school days."

"So anyway, who wants to play?" Aomine cut in, spinning the ball on his index finger as he raised an eyebrow at Kuroo. "Us miracles against you guys."

"That's hardly fair Aomine-kun." Kuroko remarked. "For a start, Akashi-kun doesn't wish to play so we wouldn't have a point guard."

"Kasa will do it, it's fine."

"Like fuck will I." Kasamatsu replied. "Get Furi to do it if you're that desperate for one."

The brunet looked spooked as his name was volunteered, even more so when Riko agreed to it on his behalf. "But I've never played with them--"

"You'll be fine Kouki." Akashi replied. "They take care of themselves most of the time now."

"But--"

"Alright, Bokuto and I accept your challenge." Kuroo declared, glancing to Suga. "What about you?"

Suga shook his head, gesturing to Hinata and Kageyama instead. "I think my kouhai's are more than suited for this."

"Hinata's too short to reach the hoop though." Tsukishima sniggered.

"He can go on Tanaka's shoulders--"

"I'll be fine!" Hinata stated, puffing his cheeks out in frustration.

Kagami chuckled to himself, nudging Kuroko slightly. "Hm who does he remind me of?"

"Yourself Kagami-kun. You told us the exact same thing in our last match and--"

"I was talking about you and your stubbornness." Kagami sighed, noting the small smile on Kuroko's lips.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Kuroko shrugged as Hinata ignored Tsukishima's slight teasing and bounded down to stand with the human skyscrapers that were Kuroo and Lev. Kageyama pleaded with Noya to take his place instead as he really didn't feel like dying that day, the second year considering it for a moment before Hinata interrupted by calling up to him with a 'senpai come and show them the basketball version your rolling thunder move!'.

Asahi was caught between being excited and being fearful for his lover's life. He spared Suga a slightly worried glance as Noya followed Hinata's lead and bounded down to meet the others, the co-captain smiled to the ace in return, concealing his own inner turmoil at Daichi's uncharacteristic quietness. The captain had joined the team for breakfast a little late and had certainly picked up on Suga's concern in the way the other immediately stated he'd serve breakfast to him. Neither of them had mentioned the previous night with the exception of Suga asking if he was hungover, Daichi shook his head and just said Kuroo and Bokuto were both loud sleepers, whether the co-captain believed him was a different matter. The entire morning the captain was a little more subdued than usual, not quite 'with it' as both Asahi and Tanaka picked up on it too, it was beginning to become a problem.

Bokuto laughed as he lazily strolled down to complete the amateur team, he cast a side glance to Aomine who seemed far too cocky in his opinion. "Well, I guess there's nothing left to address. Let's make it two nil to us eh Kuroo?"

Kuroo sniggered as he nodded. Just like that, the tension between the two groups increased. Akashi raised an eyebrow as he sensed it, reminding him of those middle school days. He smiled to himself as he watched the miracles accept Furihata into the ranks as their point guard, in all honesty they probably could've coped without one by just trusting each other but Akashi knew that it wouldn't take much for them to descend into bickering without an unbiased voice to calm them down.

"Alright so you know how a tip off works right?" Kise grinned as he stepped forward, he found it very amusing how despite being third years, he was taller than both the captains. The smirk was wiped off his face however when Kuroo gestured for Lev to go for the tip off.

"Oh we know, hence why Lev is doing it."

Aomine and Midorima both face-palmed, Furihata looked mildly panicked until Kagami nudged him and told him not to worry about it, that Lev couldn't possibly out pace Kise in something he hadn't done before. Ennoshita once again was the one to toss the ball up, Kise sprang up to reach for the ball whereas Lev only had to stretch slightly to bat it backwards into Kuroo's hands. The miracles half expected Kuroo to suddenly become a problem but it seemed that the third year wasn't actually sure what he was meant to do now that he was holding the ball.

"You run with it--but you dribble it, and maybe pass it!" Hinata summarised as Bokuto laughed at Kuroo's puzzled expression and then Midorima's exasperated sighs.

Kuroo nodded, whether it was an act to throw their opponents off or not, remained to be seen. Aomine wasn't taking any chances by leaving Bokuto wide open to receive passes and Midorima was already making use of the half an inch height advantage he had on Lev. Furihata was somewhat struggling to keep tabs on Noya as Kagami seemed to be having just as much fun marking Hinata.

Kise patiently waited for Kuroo to make his move, their friends on the sidelines were making a racket but it wasn't a foreign sensation to either of them as Kuroo smirked and made to drive past Kise by force. The blond returned the smirk as he easily swiped the ball and immediately passed to Aomine who had no trouble shaking off Bokuto and dunking.

"Have to try harder than that." Aomine declared with a grin.

"Ohoho?" Bokuto chuckled. "Okay."

From the sidelines, Yaku and Akaashi exchanged a glance. They could already sense that their captains weren't gonna let this go without a fight, or potentially embarrassing themselves. Hinata and Noya were eager to get stuck in, as was Lev but it became apparent that Kuroo had other ideas.

After several more unsuccessful attempts to get past Kise, he finally passed to Bokuto - who almost hit Aomine in the stomach with his elbow - and then the game really came to life. There were sloppy passes and shots from the more inexperienced side, Hinata fell over his own feet several times but was still smiling as Kagami helped him off the floor. Noya was finding his libero training useful as he saved the ball from bouncing out of bounds several times, although his height and lack of aim made shooting an almost useless affair. Instead, he'd pass to Lev who was much more likely to score.

Or at least that's what they thought. Turns out the rookie blocker wasn't so great at aiming. Kuroo groaned in partial frustration each time he missed and tried not to curse his underclassman.

"Think of it this way," Bokuto sighed, putting an arm around Kuroo's shoulders as Lev apologised to Hinata once again for missing an easy shot. "at least he's getting _some_ practice."

Kuroo shot him an exasperated look. "I'm gonna have to assign someone to personally train him at this rate."

"Hey what about Yaku?"

"I don't want my freshman _killed_ Bo." Kuroo chuckled, shrugging off the arm as Kagami signalled to restart the game.

"I dunno man, I don't think Yaku would kill him, maybe maim or serious injure but not kill." Bokuto shrugged.

It had been decided, mainly by Furihata and Kagami, to back off from the opposition to see if they could actually score a few points. Of course Aomine and Kise were a little reluctant to take it easy - the whole point of this match was to assert their dominance - but when Furihata was the one feeding the ball to them half the time, they couldn't really disagree.

Hinata was defiant as Kagami loosely marked him, the ace hadn't completely given up but when Kuroo sent the ball towards the first year he made little attempt to stop it. It was entirely possible, given where they were on the court that Hinata _could_ score a basket. Kagami knew better than to assume based on someone's height after all Kuroko had shown he could come close on multiple occasions and Hinata wasn't that much shorter.

"Go ahead, I won't stop you." Kagami murmured, out of ear shot of Aomine who would definitely protest at the idea.

Hinata panicked slightly but nodded, his arms shaking as he tried to line up the shot like he had seen Midorima and Kise do several times. It was sloppy at best but by a fluke, the ball bounced off the backboard and into the basket. The players watching erupted into cheers, Lev and Noya running over and congratulating Hinata on his score, Bokuto and Kuroo exchanging an almost disbelieving look. Even the miracles were smiling slightly as the celebrations got a little out of hand for two points being scored.

Kise decided to swap with Kuroko, partly because he was tired and also because he wanted to see if the Seirin duo would show off a little. The shadow ended up marking Hinata whilst Kagami moved to mark Kuroo, Hinata was both excited and cautious of Kuroko, having being told that he was an exception to most of the normal stats of a basketball player. None of them had really seen _what_ made him that exception yet.

It was almost like a switch had been flipped, Aomine and Midorima exchanging a glance as Furihata passed the ball to Kuroko. At first Kuroko looked like he was going to do a simple pass but both Kagami and Aomine saw the tell-tale sign of one of Kuroko's 'weird passes' being set up. The volleyball players, of course, didn't know any better.

When the ball shot past both Hinata and Bokuto’s heads, it suddenly dawned on them. Kuroo found himself being sprinted towards by both aces _and_ a basketball. He somewhat foolishly tried to intercept the pass and got his hand bruised as a result of the impact. Aomine chuckled as Kagami beat him to the ball and dunked it without any trouble.

"What the hell was that?" Noya asked Furihata who nervously smiled. Kuroo was cradling his hand and Hinata was bouncing up and down in front of Kuroko asking what he did and how he did it.

"Well that was Kuroko's ignite pass. It's...uh...a secret weapon of ours." Furihata explained. "It's almost impossible to accept properly, only Kagami and Aomine have really got the hang of it. Our team's centre player can sometimes catch it but generally most who attempt to end up with bruised hands."

"Huh, so you've won matches with that?" Noya was already debating how to create such a move in volleyball.

"Yeah, it helps that Kuroko's misdirection bleeds into the move. It's taken a while for him to perfect it though, and once a team has figured out how to stop it, it becomes useless."

Kuroo's hand was an angry shade of red, both Bokuto and Kagami were looking at it to determine if there was any need for first aid when Midorima declared he was done playing. The match was called off, with the miracles having proved their point and the Nekoma captain now having his hand looked at by Akaashi.

As it was reasonably close to lunchtime, Kagami and Himuro volunteered to cook for everyone. They coerced Murasakibara and Sakurai into helping, with everyone still reasonably full from breakfast they didn't have to do much in the way of cooking. The Nekoma team showed them where the food storage was and explained that the coaches would be restocking it in a day or two anyway so they could use whatever they wanted.  It didn't take long for them to decide on something.

Whilst lunch was being crafted, most of the teenagers were hanging out just outside the gym on the grassy hillside. Kageyama was being subjected to Hinata babbling about Kuroko's awesome passing, only being egged on by Noya who was trying to brainstorm how they could create a similar move. Takao and Kise tried to tell them that it only worked with Kuroko because of his misdirection and anyone trying to copy it without that crucial element would probably fail but that didn't stop them trying. Kageyama tuned out of the conversation, laying on his stomach and resting his head on his folded arms as the midday sunlight bathed the area in warmth. The excitement of the match had sapped a lot of them of their energy and simply laying in the sunshine was the best idea anyone had ever had.

At some point, Kageyama fell asleep. Or he assumed he had because the next thing he knew was a hand on his prompting him to open his eyes. Hinata was led right next to him, asleep, and the setter felt himself blushing heavily as he realised that several of their teammates had noticed the hand-holding. Yet he couldn't quite bring himself to move away, Hinata looked so at ease as he slept, fingers nudging Kageyama's and prompting the setter to slowly link their fingers together. He couldn't exactly ignore how his heart raced a little at the innocent contact between them that was a far cry from how they acted in practice.

Suga was the first one to notice, he didn't say anything as Kageyama's panicked gaze met his, simply smiling and directing his attention elsewhere. Noya was still in a very animated conversation with Takao until Midorima cupped a hand over his point guard's mouth. Kise and Akashi exchanged an amused smile as Takao glanced back at the ace before falling backwards into his lap and laughing at how the other seemed startled by this chain of events. A few of the other volleyball players were also napping in the sunlight, there was no rush to find something else to do as they waited for lunch to arrive.

It was a rather peaceful atmosphere; the warmth of the sun being subdued slightly by the light breeze that would wash over them every few minutes, the birds chirped in the surrounding woodland, the cicadas were providing their usual summer soundtrack, and for a rare moment, no-one was bickering.

Akaashi had applied some ice to Kuroo's hand, the captain had complained at first and was almost adamant that he didn't need that much medical attention but quickly changed his mind when the ice soothed his strained muscles. Bokuto happened to lean closer to Akaashi and whisper one or two comments about 'nurse Keiji' that nearly made the setter jam an ice cube down his boyfriend's throat. Kuroo noted the change in the shade of Akaashi's cheeks and how the setter wouldn't quite look him in the eye, he wondered if he had done something to offend the other and made a note to ask Kenma later.

After a while, Kagami and Sakurai appeared with platters of sushi. Those who were asleep soon woke up as the excitable chatter rose again with the introduction of food, Hinata startled awake as Kageyama ruffled his hair and lightly nudged his side, trying to play off how he fell asleep next to his teammate, no-one felt like challenging him.

"Wait where's Himuro and Mura?" Kasamatsu asked, Kagami nearly choked on his sushi roll as Sakurai laughed nervously.

"Uh, they said they'd clean up." Sakurai replied.

"Right, Mura, clean up." Midorima stated. "I'll believe it when I see it."

"I don't think you want to go and see it really." Aomine murmured under his breath. Kise cracked up in laughter and Akashi tried to seem unfazed by it all.

Kiyoko and Momoi were exchanging stories of managing troublesome teenage boys whilst Riko lazily braided Yachi's hair, Noya quickly took note and pleaded Asahi to let him try and braid his hair. The ace nervously laughed at first but eventually let his lover have his way, untying his bun and letting Noya's fingers run through the long thick strands. Idle chitchat between everyone made the relaxing feeling return, it was becoming hard to resist falling asleep in the warm late afternoon sun.

For most of the afternoon, Suga hadn't let Daichi's quietness get to him. It was likely that the captain was just tired, but that didn't really sit well with the co-captain, Daichi had shown up to practice numerous times running on less sleep and been fine. There had to be another reason for it but Suga couldn't bring himself to ask, not in front of everyone anyway. It didn't stop him catching the other's eye and offering a reassuring smile, Daichi returned it but there was something off. It was really starting to make Suga question if there was some unspoken tension regarding the previous night's events.

Surely just helping Daichi back to his bed wasn't _that_ scandalous, true they hadn't really been in that situation before but it's what best friends did, right?

 

* * *

 

 

Dinner was a quick affair, Bokuto and Aomine voted to go and get takeout from the local burger joint and took Ennoshita, Tanaka and Lev with them to help carry it all back. Whilst they were gone, most of the others decided to take advantage of the free time by taking a shower or sleeping. Kenma had been in the process of swapping game cartridges when Kuroo unceremoniously sat in front of him with a heavy sigh.

"Have I offended Akaashi?"

"...not to my knowledge." Kenma replied, keeping a blank stare on his face as he waited for Kuroo to dive into a long ramble about how Akaashi had been acting weird. Sure enough, the captain did go on a ramble but it took an abrupt turn.

"...so do you think he likes me or something? I mean he's with Bo but it's not beyond the bounds of--"

"Be careful what you're implying Kuro." Kenma stated, the conversation with the other setter from that morning still fresh in his mind. "You may stumble into something you're not familiar with."

Kuroo raised an eyebrow, he knew Kenma knew something, but it was unlikely that the setter would give that information up. He sighed heavily and switched topics. "So, do you think Sawamura is gonna confess to Suga anytime soon?"

Kenma rolled his eyes and puffed out his cheeks slightly in thought. "Dunno. Sugawara seems to be getting uneasy because of how quiet--"

"So what you're saying is we should help them along..." Kuroo smirked slightly.

"I wasn't saying that at all. And don't drag me into your crazy schemes Kuro."

Kuroo laughed and threw his arms around Kenma, locking him in a hug that the setter couldn't get out of even if he tried. "But we're partners in crime Kenma!"

"That's Bokuto you're thinking of but okay." Kenma sighed, resigning himself to being involved in whatever weird plan his best friend came up with. He'd even go as far as to say he felt a little sorry for their rivals.

When the convoy returned with the food, everyone ate in Karasuno's room. Already ideas were being thrown around for the next day, once again no-one really had an idea of what to do besides go swimming again. Kuroo was still mulling over in his mind how to go about getting his rival captain and co-captain together, cluing Bokuto in on his idea and getting a nod in agreement.

There were more plans afoot though, Momoi had been carefully observing Aomine and Sakurai's interactions as well as Akashi's subtle advances on Furihata. She felt that it was up to her to get both her old teammates to finally get their acts together and stop tiptoeing around their crushes, and she had the perfect solution;

A good old fashioned prank war. What could _possibly_ go wrong?


	8. A war declaration

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Psh, I still don't know why I feel this way."
> 
> "'cause of his dashing exotic looks~" Noya remarked, avoiding a half-hearted punch to the shoulder.
> 
> "Russia isn't exotic dumbass."

Chapter Eight

A war declaration

Being one of the first people awake wasn't exactly the most fun thing in the world. Yamaguchi discovered that the hard way. He stirred as the sun filtered in through the unclosed blinds, his futon was right in the path of the sunlight and the warm beam had struck his face and woken him up. Once he was sat up and rubbing his eyes, he realised he was the _only_ one awake.

The soft sounds of his teammates and their guests sleeping filled the otherwise silent room. He regarded them as he thought about what to do now he was awake so early. Noya had practically rolled out of his futon and into Asahi's, Hinata had draped himself over Kageyama and was in danger of head-butting Kagami in the side. The scene made Yamaguchi smile slightly, slightly thankful him and Tsukishima had distanced themselves from their more expressive teammates.

He was just about to get up and see if anyone in the other room was awake when he heard someone groan slightly. When Takao sat up and yawned loudly, he immediately glanced over and smiled. It didn't feel nearly as awkward now that he wasn't the only one awake.

"Sup?" Takao murmured, looking down at the two sleeping teens between them. Through some room shuffling, Midorima and Tsukishima had ended up next to each other in the interest of keeping all the hyperactive first years in one corner of the room. The fact that they both had similar sleeping habits greatly amused Takao. "Hey Yama, we should totally hide their glasses."

Yamaguchi's eyes widened. "No! Tsukki will get so mad..."

Takao raised an eyebrow. "So will Shin-chan but it'll be hilarious. I bet you ¥1000 that they'll blame Kise or that Hinata kid."

"...but...it's a cruel thing to do." Yamaguchi replied, glancing down at Tsukishima. The blond looked so much more at peace than usual, once or twice he had seen the other smile in his sleep and the fuzzy feeling in his chest was what led to Yamaguchi realising he was crushing _hard_ on the middle blocker.

"It's called a prank Yama." Takao smiled. "We'll make sure they get them back before breakfast."

He was in two minds about this, he ached to let loose a little and have fun like Hinata and Noya were able to, but Yamaguchi still wasn't quite out of his shell yet. Yes he had reached his limit with Tsukishima's bad attitude and the confrontation after one of the late practices had given them both a much needed boost, but there was still something holding him back. He figured that maybe this seemingly harmless prank might be a good start.

"So...where do we hide them?" Yamaguchi asked almost timidly. Takao held both pairs in his hands and looked around the room.

"Hm...somewhere safe, but not obvious."

"Someone's bag?"

"Ah yes! And I have the best person in mind...but we'll need to sneak into the other room."

"Eh? Why?"

Takao let out a small chuckle. "Trust me Yama."

"Can you call me Yamaguchi please..." The server sighed quietly as Takao padded over to the door.

"Hm? Oh okay." Takao shrugged, sliding the door open slowly so it wouldn't wake anyone up. "Come on then."

In his mind, Yamaguchi was questioning if following Takao's lead was _really_ a good idea, but before he could back out they were in Nekoma's room. A sudden feeling of dread overcame him as he realised his captain was sleeping in this room and probably would question his motives for sneaking around with Takao and two pairs of glasses.

"Ah, here we go." Takao whispered. It was hard not to notice that the sleeping giant that was Murasakibara had basically robbed Himuro of his pillows, in return Himuro was using one of his arms as a pillow, Yamaguchi reckoned that was probably uncomfortable as hell. Takao knelt down next to the pile of pillows where a sports bag lay, trying not to laugh as he did so. "So that takes care of Shin-chan."

"...okay..."

"So who does Tsukishima dislike?"

Yamaguchi felt put on the spot. He knew Tsukishima disliked a few people but it was more to do with volleyball and not their actual personalities. He looked around the room of sleeping players, he recalled that Tsukishima complained a lot about Bokuto and Kuroo and relayed this to Takao. The point guard chuckled slightly and nodded, kneeling down next to the sleeping captain and slipping Tsukishima's glasses into the outer pouch of his bag.

No sooner had they closed the bag, a gruff voice startled them both.

"--the hell are you doing in here?" Aomine murmured, rubbing his face as he propped himself up on his elbow.

"Just delivering something to Kuroo-senpai~" Takao replied, waving off the miracle's gaze.

Yamaguchi nodded, slightly intimidated by Aomine's unimpressed expression, yet Takao merely shrugged it off with a smile.

"Huh...okay." Aomine grumbled, rolling over in his futon without another word. He heard them both leave the room, the sound of sleeping students filling the silence once more. He debated sleeping more himself, but his rumbling stomach convinced him to leave the comfort of the futon in search of breakfast.

The kitchen was empty, which surprised him a little as he had assumed Karasuno were awake considering Takao and Yamaguchi were up.  Nevertheless, Aomine started making himself breakfast. Whilst minding the omelette on the stove, he started thinking about the day ahead and what chaos could be created by himself and Kise. So far this vacation had proven to be a nice break, he wasn't getting yelled for skipping practice or staying in bed all day, and he was actually having _fun_. Regardless of the excitable nature of the others, he felt at peace here, like he had space to breathe and think.

A startled yelp dragged him from his thoughts. He recognised the other person in the room as the blond female manager of Karasuno.

"S-Sorry! I didn't realise someone was already using the kitchen!" Yachi apologised, eyes wide as she regarded Aomine's large build. She went one to apologise even more and Aomine couldn't help but liken her to Sakurai.

"'t's okay." He smiled slightly. "You want any help cooking? I'm pretty much done." He gestured to the now cooked omelette that he was about to slip onto a plate.

Yachi looked mortified at the idea. She was getting flashbacks of the BBQ fiasco where she felt caged in by all the tall players and was convinced she'd die. "No! It's okay, it's my duty to cook for the team this morning and Suga-senpai will be down soon to help anyway--"

The more she spoke, the more Aomine was reminded of the times he had to deal with Sakurai being apologetic yet stubborn. His thought process shifted to wondering if Sakurai would cook for him knowing that the other's bento boxes were always tasty. Whenever he tasted some of Sakurai's cooking he was always left feeling content and almost sleepy.

"Yeah, but I'm here _now_. I mean, I got nothing else to do so I might as well help you until he arrives." Aomine shrugged.

 

* * *

 

 

"Is that a sharpie or a dry erase marker?" Kiyoko whispered as Momoi slowly opened the door to the Nekoma room. The sleeping boys didn't react to the sound of the sliding door, prompting Momoi to enter with Kiyoko on her heels.

"Sharpie of course." Momoi replied with a devious smile.

"It's slightly cruel..." Kiyoko returned with a smaller smile. "It won't wash off right away."

"Exactly!" Momoi breathed, peering around the room for her victim. When she ran the idea by Riko she had been met with a slightly confused look regarding the logic behind her scheme. However, even if the plan didn't have its intended outcome, it would still provide some entertainment nonetheless.

"Are you sure about this Momoi-chan?"

Momoi had to remind herself that Kiyoko was in fact her senior as she nodded, kneeling down next to the right futon and brushing away the mouse-brown hair that was in the way of her pen. Kiyoko watched warily as the familiar stench of Sharpie wafted over, she felt a little bad for the poor boy who was at Momoi's mercy right now but she also intrigued to see if Momoi's weird scheme worked.

"Done~ Now let's get out of here before--" Momoi declared, capping the pen. A grumble from the other side of the room cut her off and made her nearly drop the pen onto her victim's face, Kiyoko's quick reflexes saved the pen and also cupped a hand over her mouth to stop her squealing.

Both their gazes fixed on the half asleep Lev as he rolled over and butted his head against Yaku's shoulder, the libero showed no signs of discomfort, nor did he roll away. The girls exchanged a sigh of relief as Lev seemed to fall back into a slumber. After a few moments, Momoi giggled and gestured that they should leave, as they were quietly closing the door, another voice startled them.

"Kiyoko-san?"

"Suga-san...what are you doing awake?"

The setter gave her a slightly puzzled look but then smiled. "I said I'd help Yachi with breakfast this morning." He then glanced between the two girls. "Why are you both sneaking around so early hm?"

Momoi shrugged, fluttering her eyelashes at the older boy. "Are you suspicious of us senpai?"

Kiyoko's eyes widened as she tried to make sense of why Momoi was flirting with Suga. The co-captain showed no discomfort, he simply raised an eyebrow and folded his arms across his chest.

"Let's just say you're acting like the freshmen do when I've caught them doing something they shouldn't be doing." He chuckled. "Also, I can see the sharpie in your hand."

The girls exchanged a glance, they both started giggling but refused to come clean to the setter. Suga rolled his eyes slightly and chuckled before excusing himself to go and help Yachi. He thought it was good that Kiyoko was bonding with the other managers, he never doubted that she had friends but ever since Yachi had arrived at Karasuno he had seen a change in the third year. A good change. As much as he was good at picking up subtle changes in the team, he could see that had been one in the manager too but he wasn't going to pry any further than that just yet.

 

* * *

 

 

As the smell of cooked food started wafting out of the kitchen, sleepy teenagers started filing into the dining area. Aomine had stuck around to help cook even when Suga showed up, it was pointless doing anything else as most of the others were still asleep at the time. Everything seemed to be fine, the sound of chitchat started filling the air and no-one seemed to be in the mood for bickering that morning. Even the likes of Kuroo and Bokuto seemed docile for the moment.

the last person to arrive for breakfast was Kasamatsu, which was a little odd as he was usually on time or always with Kise, but the blond had arrived with Hinata and Kuroko a while beforehand. The Kaijo captain didn't pause to get food though, he made a beeline for Momoi and tapped her shoulder.

"...something's up with Sakurai." He murmured. "He went to the restroom but locked himself in there and refuses to come out."

Momoi knew exactly why that was happening but did a good job of looking concerned. "Is he sick?"

Kasamatsu shrugged. "I don't know, you might wanna check."

Momoi nodded, casting a glance to the girls who were all in on the scheme she had concocted. "I'll send Dai-chan, thank-you for letting me know." She smiled, bowing in gratitude to the third year who seemed none-the wiser. She then made her way to the ace in question and told him in rather blunt terms that Sakurai had locked himself in the guy's restroom and she couldn't go in there to get him so Aomine had to do it. At first Aomine complained but he quickly softened and declared he'd go and find out what was wrong with his teammate.

He didn't think much of it, figuring that Sakurai was just homesick or something mundane like that. He heard the other sniffing loudly as he opened the door to the restroom, sure enough one of the cubicles was locked as Kasamatsu had said.

"Ryou? It`s me." Aomine called as he knocked on the door. "Satsuki sent me to find out why you're in here."

"G-Go away." Sakurai stammered. "I-I'm fine."

Aomine sighed slightly. "That stinks of crap Ryou, come on give me more credit than that. You can tell me. Are you homesick? Did you eat something funny?"

There was a pause. Aomine rubbed the back of his head as he debated busting the door down, but the thought of Yaku beating his ass for it convinced him to rethink his idea.

"I-I woke up like it," Sakurai mumbled. "I don't know who..."

The statement puzzled Aomine. "What are you talking about?"

The sound of movement followed by the door unlocking prompted Aomine to step back a little. The door opened and a very flustered Sakurai was stood there, his cheeks red and eyes glassy as Aomine understood the other's problem.

"Are those...cat whiskers drawn--"

"Sharpie yeah." Sakurai finished. "S-Someone did it during the night."

Aomine was in two minds about this; one was that someone had just declared war on Touou by daring to single out Sakurai for a prank. The other was that there was something about how timid and fragile the smaller boy looked in that moment that made Aomine want to hug him and never let go.

"...well I was the first one awake and I saw nothing odd, well Takao and that Yamaguchi kid were sneaking around but they seemed to be doing something with Kuroo's bag." Aomine replied eventually as Sakurai stepped up to the sink to look at his reflection. He looked like he was going to burst into tears. "...in any case, we'll get the bastards back for this."

"I tried washing it off with water but it won't come off..."

Aomine didn't think as he gently took Sakurai's chin in his hand and tilted it up to meet his gaze. the other was understandably confused and a little more flustered as Aomine inspected the black streaks on his milky complexion.

"Hm, I'll phone Kise. We played a similar prank on Midorima once and apparently those make-up wipes he uses work well."

"I-I don't want to be seen though!" Sakurai protested.

"Tsk, I didn't say I was gonna let him did I? I'll stay here with you Ryou."

Sakurai watched as Aomine let go of him and fished his phone out of his pocket, he was a bundle of emotions as he still got used to being called by his first name by the ace. He was actively trying to play down the idea that the ace was interested in him, but when Aomine hardly called the other miracles by their first name - the exception being Kuroko obviously - it was hard for him to be reasonable about it.

Kise, of course, asked a million and one questions as to why Aomine needed his make-up wipes, Aomine refused to go into detail which meant the conversation ended up being several minutes longer than it needed to be. Finally Kise agreed and Aomine could end the call and focus on the more petty revenge side of this situation.

"So, who would draw cat whiskers on you?" He asked, as if Sakurai would know.

"Dunno..." The other mumbled.

"Hm, this kinda stinks of Nekoma. Kuroo's always going on about him being cat-like." Aomine carried on talking but Sakurai found himself thinking about how odd it was that Aomine seemed to care so much about it. In a way it was bound to happen, the prank that is, as they were in a camp atmosphere with several practical jokers between the teams present. That still didn't excuse them targeting _him_ of all people.

The door opening spooked Sakurai, he was startled and ended up burying his face in Aomine's chest to hide his face from the intruder. Kise's light chuckle did little to ease him. Aomine placed a hand on Sakurai's head as he accepted the packet from Kise, the comforting weight on his head made him feel a little calmer, even more so when Kise left and Aomine didn't immediately pull away.

"I-I'm sorry I'm so--"

"Don't worry Ryou. He's gone, uh, do you wanna clean your face then?"

Sakurai pulled away, accepting the packet from a rosy-cheeked Aomine and quickly setting about scrubbing off the black markings. He tried not to feel self-conscious as Aomine watched him, the mood in the room had shifted slightly and it was borderline awkward. Once there was little to no evidence of the whiskers, Sakurai smiled slightly. Seeing the smile was like a punch to Aomine’s gut as he realised a split second to late that he was mirroring the smile back at the shooter.

If it hadn't been obvious to him before, it certainly was now.

"Thank-you Daiki." Sakurai breathed, almost too shy and embarrassed to speak any louder. "F-For staying and helping."

"N-No problem." Aomine replied, suddenly far too aware of how warm the enclosed room seemed and how fast his heart was beating. "Anyway, you missed breakfast so do you...want me to make you something real quick before--"

Sakurai shook his head. "No it's okay."

"But what about food? You gotta eat."

"I think the idea is for everyone to go out today, I'll find something in a store--"

Aomine sighed, stepping forward and taking Sakurai's hand before leading him out of the restroom. "I'm not letting you leave without eating _something_ Ryou."

If he had any objections, Sakurai didn't voice them.

 

* * *

 

 

It was setting up to be a stifling hot day, the humidity hung in the air as the sun beat down, playing any kind of sports was out of the question, even swimming seemed off the cards as the pool was out of service for cleaning. However, two freshmen didn't let that deter them.

"A water fight?" Yaku clarified as both Hinata and Lev looked at him with puppy eyes. Suga and Daichi offered no help as it really wasn't their call, instead they gave Yaku a sympathetic smile.

"It's so hot today, it would be perfect!" Hinata continued, windmilling his arms as if that would prove his point. "Please Yaku-senpai?"

Hearing the commotion, Noya bounded over, upon being clued in on the idea he grinned and joined the campaign for a water fight. "Yeah Morisuke, a water fight wouldn't hurt right? Plus think about getting the opportunity to get Kuroo back for all his teasing."

Yaku narrowed his eyes at Noya, he had forgotten how he told the other libero about his current plight and how his captain was taking great delight in trying to expose it himself. Hinata and Lev were confused but if Noya's cryptic talking would guarantee them a water fight then they'd go along with it.

"...fine! I'll check with the coaches though, and I suppose we'll have to find some water pistols--"

"Leave that to us!" Hinata declared, Lev nodded enthusiastically.

Yaku sighed, glancing to the leaders of Karasuno. "Can you two ensure nothing too crazy gets bought whilst I go and check this is okay?"

Suga gave him a thumbs up, the two freshmen cheered and Yaku gestured for Noya to follow him. The two liberos started the short walk to where their coaches were staying, it didn't take long for Noya to ask about the current situation.

"No I haven't said anything to him." Yaku replied, slightly irritated. "He's so oblivious."

Noya chuckled. "And you're really stubborn."

"Psh, I still don't know why I feel this way."

"'cause of his dashing exotic looks~" Noya remarked, avoiding a half-hearted punch to the shoulder.

"Russia isn't exotic dumbass." Yaku scowled, trying not to make it so blindingly obvious that having a crush on his underclassman was bothering him.

Noya dropped his class-clown act, giving Yaku a more serious smile. "Well in any case, he won't do anything unless you make the first move. I had the same issue with Asahi, he was too timid to do anything until I made a move on him."

Yaku considered it, how would he even go about making a move? He didn't want to be _too_ obvious in case it all backfired. Kuroo would never let him hear the end of it, then again Yaku could see where he could get his own back there.

"Any suggestions?" He sighed as they got to the room the coaches were staying in.

"Hm...get him all wet in this water fight of ours." Noya winked, laughing as Yaku's face reddened. The other wasn't able to respond before the door opened and his coach gave him an odd look.

With the adults deciding 'what could possibly go wrong' in regards to the water fight, not even the building heat of the day could stop certain freshmen getting excited. Kageyama found himself biting back laughter as Hinata tried and failed to get Tsukishima to agree to take part in the activity. It came as no surprise that most of the students were game, very few were adamant they weren't participating and it was really no surprise who.

"I can't _see_ Takao." Midorima stubbornly stated. He hadn't had any luck finding his glasses and Takao was starting to regret hiding them.

"Try harder." Takao shrugged, trying not to burst into a fit of laughter. Tsukishima was a little more subdued without his glasses, he could see enough to not be bumping into anything but he wasn't about to charge around with a water pistol. Yamaguchi couldn't stop staring at the other's calm and composed expression, he expected Tsukishima to immediately blame Hinata and demand them back. Instead, the first year had merely shrugged and accepted the fact someone was trying to be funny.

It didn't take long for his glasses to be found though. Whilst Suga and Daichi had departed with a handful of others to buy some water pistols, Kuroo and Bokuto had made an interesting discovery in Kuroo's bag that provided a lot of entertainment.

"Ohhh Kuroo looks so sophisticated!" Bokuto remarked as Kuroo tried on the mystery glasses.

"I suppose you could say I'm a _spectacle_ " Kuroo grinned. Bokuto started laughing as Akaashi shook his head and delicately picked the glasses off Kuroo's face before any more puns could be made. Kenma knew exactly where they came from but didn't feel like shedding any light on the subject.

"Kuro-san can you not be like this for one moment?" Akaashi sighed.

"Like what hm?" Kuroo asked, leaning closer to the setter and expecting Akaashi to get flustered and shove him away. Rather, he blinked and seemed unfazed despite the close proximity of Kuroo's lips. Bokuto watched with wide eyes, not sure whether to intervene or not as Kuroo raised an eyebrow.

"Like a pain in the ass." Akaashi finally said, backing away tactfully. Upon closer inspection, he recognised the glasses and wanted to murder Kuroo once and for all for stooping this low for a prank. "Why did you steal Tsukishima-san's glasses?"

"Eh? _Me_?!" Kuroo genuinely seemed offended. "You wound me with your wild accusations Akaashi." He swooned, using Bokuto's shoulder for support. "Did you hear that Bo? He accused _me_ of stealing!"

Kenma huffed, plucking the glasses from Akaashi's hand and excusing himself from the strange show to return them. When Tsukishima received his glasses and the explanation that 'Kuro found these in his bag but I doubt he had the brains to steal them', he snorted and smiled slightly, thanking Kenma and slipping them back on without a second thought.

The first thing to come into focus was Yamaguchi's soft smile and instantly, all was well in his world.

As Kenma returned to the Nekoma room, he was slightly surprised to see Himuro talking to Kuroo, he was also holding a pair of glasses. It quickly became common knowledge that someone had slipped Midorima's glasses into Murasakibara's bag and the other's lover was slightly put out that someone would do that.

"You could say, they were trying to _frame_ him." Kuroo remarked, getting another laugh from Bokuto and a slightly unimpressed look from Himuro and Akaashi.

"Your puns are worse than Seirin's point guard's..." Himuro sighed, excusing himself to return the glasses to Midorima and try not to get accused himself.

"Y'know, I think someone is trying to start a prank war." Aomine remarked to Kasamatsu. They had been listening to everything said in the past five minutes, the ace had told the captain about the prank on Sakurai and the two of them were now very interested in how the volleyball players seemed to rile each other up on an almost hourly basis.

"...cause that's going to go well." Kasamatsu huffed. "All we need is Kagami and Kise getting in on the act and it'll all go downhill from there."

Aomine chuckled. "Well what's the worst that could happen?"

"Never ask that." Kasamatsu grumbled. "You may as well have doomed us all."

 

* * *

 

 

It became obvious that the water fight would start out as a team versus team affair but no doubt down-spiral into an all-out war. The courtyard seemed to be the most convenient place to hold it as they could run two water hoses out of the restrooms on the ground floor and there were flower pots and benches to use as cover. The midday sun bought heavy heat with it, it was hard to resist bursting the water balloons too early as the girls filled up several buckets with them. It had been made very clear that no-one was to go indoors if they were soaked, everyone had been told to wear clothes they didn't mind getting wet in and advised repeatedly to wear their swimwear underneath that, whether anyone actually listened was another matter entirely.

"So, round three of the miracles versus the volleyball senpais?" Furihata mused to Akashi as they watched Kise and Aomine squaring up to Bokuto.

"Yep, although I hardly want to be involved." Akashi stated. At first he wasn't even going to take part in the water fight but a combination of being told 'you need to live a little' by Kise and Furihata declaring he was playing, had persuaded him to let them drag him into the chaos. Besides, with both Midorima and Murasakibara declining to play for their own obvious reasons, the miracle team was a little outnumbered by the captains. Kuroko had made himself scarce which didn't surprise Akashi in the slightest, he figured that the shadow was scouting out the courtyard from one of the upper floors and possibly plotting something.

Daichi had begrudgingly accepted the challenge, seeing it as a team building exercise as well as a good way to de-stress, he had managed to shove his current infatuation with Suga to the back of his mind as he focused more on trying to keep his team in line ahead of this activity. Surprisingly, almost the entire team was down to play, the exception being Tsukishima but the captain had feeling that the first year would end up being involved one way or another.

"Okay, that's the last bucket." Riko sighed, gesturing for Sakurai to take the last water balloons away. Her and Momoi were debating whether to take sides in this fight or to just create havoc from the sidelines. "Do you wanna tell them they can start?"

Momoi smiled, nodding as she tied her hair back in a ponytail, both of them were wearing their swimsuits under their clothes and had a distinct feeling that if they did throw themselves into the fight then they'd become easy targets. Yachi had outright declined to get involved, she didn't want to 'get squished' by the towering players and Kiyoko got out of it by stating someone had to be on hand with the first aid kit, much to Tanaka and Noya's dismay.

"Okay~" Momoi called, standing in the middle of the courtyard and beaming at the group of teens. "You guys know the rules right?"

"Rules?" Takao snorted.

"There are no rules Satsuki, it's a water fight!" Aomine protested.

Momoi rolled her eyes. "I mean the no going inside part Dai-chan you baka!"

"Yeah Baka." Kagami remarked, digging Aomine in the ribs and getting a squawk in complaint.

Kuroo and Bokuto shared a glance as Momoi recomposed herself and fished out a whistle from her pocket. The loud shrill of the whistle shattered the stillness, the first one to draw blood was Kuroo hitting Daichi in the side of the head with a loud cackle.

From there, it descended into madness. Loud cries of victory and surprise began to fill the air, certain voices louder than others as rivalries sparked and friendships were long forgotten in the fast-paced duel between teams. Some were better aimers than others. It became clear who was taking it more seriously.

"Kise you bastard!" Aomine called as the blond ducked behind a bench after sneaking up behind the ace and hitting the back of his neck with a balloon. "I thought you were on my team!"

Noya took this opportunity to also land a shot on the ace whilst he was distracted, rolling along the floor with one of the water pistols in hand and drenching the bigger male before rolling back into relative safety. Aomine set his sights on Kuroo who was currently sheltering from an assault from Karasuno, Lev was with him trying to retaliate and almost failing to even land a direct hit.

The sudden introduction of one of the hose pipes caused several loud and high pitched shrieks from Hinata and Kagami. Yaku and Inouka high-fived just before targeting Bokuto who didn't really seem to care that he was getting hit every few seconds, the captain was charging through the battlefield with a super soaker in hand to try and scatter the enemy teams.

"Y'know Lev," Kuroo chuckled. "You should try and hit Yaku."

"Eh? But he's on our team." Lev hesitated as he quickly caught sight of his senpai.

"True, but I'm about to turn on Bokuto." The other smirked, refilling his pistol as he found the rival captain trying to land a hit on Suga but failing, instead getting floored by several water balloons hitting his chest from the other two third years.

Lev considered it, picking up one of the larger balloons and sneaking around to where his two teammates were drenching everyone with the hose pipe. They didn't think anything of him being there, that was until he dropped the balloon right onto Yaku's head.

"Lev what the--" Yaku started, stopping himself when we saw the first year cracking up in hysterical laughter. He smirked slightly, turning the high-pressure spray onto the other and soaking him through to the skin.

"B-Blame Kuroo-senpai!" Lev protested as Yaku went back to targeting people who weren't Lev.

"Oh I will." He replied, narrowing his eyes and willing himself not to think about how easily he could see Lev's toned chest thanks to the wet shirt.

Tsukishima had been watching the entire scene unfold, more accurately, he was watching Yamaguchi team up with Sakurai and Takao to drench Hinata and Kageyama repeatedly. He cracked a smile as he somewhat ached to join in, not sure if he'd have fun or not.

He wasn't given any time to react when Bokuto tugged him from the doorway and promptly threw a balloon at his face. He spluttered and glared through blurry glasses as the older male hooted in laughter. He had the sense to take off his glasses and pocket them before seizing the second hose pipe and aiming directly at Bokuto's face. He found himself laughing as the captain lost his footing and stumbled backwards, even more so when Kuroo jumped in and threw a few balloons for good measure.

"Tsukki how could you?!" Bokuto cried over-dramatically, Kuroo completely lost it and became the main target of Akaashi and Kasamatsu whilst he was unarmed and distracted.

"You started it." Tsukishima stated, handing the hose over to Ennoshita, the second year stole the opportunity to get Tanaka whilst he was busy trying to locate Noya. Hinata and Kageyama had found backup in form of Kagami and the first year war was well and truly in effect, their opponents didn't let up though, if anything their onslaught increased as Kagami protested just as loudly as Hinata.

The supply of water balloons was running out quickly and whilst everyone else was too busy to notice, Riko and Momoi had been preparing their attack on the boys. They had recruited Kenma and Himuro for it, the Yosen shooter had declined to play due to waking up with a sore neck but was totally down to help in any way he could. Kenma was a little more reluctant but when he was told the details of the plan he agreed, knowing there was no way he'd be caught in a crossfire.

"Are they done yet?" Momoi spoke into her phone.

"Not yet Momoi-san." Kuroko replied, his vantage point gave him a good view of the chaos below. "Although Akashi-kun looks like he's about to finally snap and drench Kise-kun."

Momoi giggled and ended the call, nodding to Riko and Himuro and hurrying to their agreed positions. With the courtyard surrounded by the building on all four sides, it provided an interesting opportunity to strike without getting hit themselves.

Just as Kuroko said, Akashi finally snapped and, with well-rehearsed aim, struck Kise in the face repeatedly. The captain didn't get away with it though, Kasamatsu had been lurking and saw the chance to avenge his lover. Furihata couldn't help but laugh as the third year emptied the water pistol and completely soaked the Rakuzan ace.

When the water balloons ran out, only the hose pipes and limited water pistols remained. Most of the teens accepted defeat and the fight drew to a slow close, everyone laughing at how soaked each other was. They made the mistake of congregating in the middle of the space and putting the hose pipes down.

When the first bucket of water was emptied out of the window of the third floor, Kise happened to be the one who got mostly caught by the air attack. He looked up to see Himuro smirking alongside Murasakibara. in the confusion, no-one noted the opposite window opening and Kenma taking aim at Kuroo until it was too late. The high-pressured hose they had found acted much like a sniper rifle from that height and the Nekoma captain shrieked, much to Bokuto and Akaashi's amusement.

"Kenma why?!" Kuroo shouted up.

Kenma simply shrugged and aimed again, this time for Bokuto who tried to use Daichi as a shield which resulted in both of them getting hit. Riko and Momoi had saved a few of the water balloons before the fight began and used this final opportunity to get the boys without getting a retaliation. Safe to say, the boys protested _loudly_ that it was unfair but that did little to stop the air raid. It was only when they well and truly ran out of ammo that the fight came to an official close.

 

* * *

 

Kiyoko and Yachi handed out towels to everyone, most of the teens stripped off their wet shirts and then realised that there was no place to really hang them. A makeshift washing line was quickly fashioned with use of whatever they could find in the cleaning supplies closet. It resulted in a lot of shirtless guys wondering around the building which of course no-one had a problem with, mainly because it was still ridiculously hot outside even with the sun setting.

Everyone was in high spirits as they relaxed in Karasuno's room, some more clothed than others, and ate a light meal. It didn't take long for someone to ask what they should do that evening.

"Drinking games." Himuro suggested after several ideas were shut down because they required effort.

"Eh?" Kagami asked, noting Kuroo and Bokuto's shared grin and Daichi's sudden reluctance to look anyone in the eye.

"It doesn't require much physical effort." Himuro's smile was innocent but Kagami knew so much better than to trust that poker face.

"What do you think?" Suga looked to Daichi and Asahi. "Our freshmen might get a little out of hand."

"I-uh...dunno." Daichi shrugged, still not looking anyone in the eye and focusing more on his outstretched legs.

"Gee what could possibly go wrong." Aomine declared as he stretched his shoulders.

"I told you not to say that!" Kasamatsu scolded, getting a giggle out of Kise and several confused looks.

No-one had any strong protests, Kuroo and Bokuto were all too happy to share their still plentiful stock with everyone who wanted it. Suga politely stated that no-one was being _forced_ to drink or participate and that, the first years especially, should be careful with how much they drink.

The girls were very quick to back out of the situation, stating they had other plans. Riko warned Kagami to make sure neither Kuroko or Furihata had too much, Kuroko interrupted and stated he had no intention of drinking at all, before she followed the other three out of the room.

"So, this just became a sausage fest." Tanaka sighed as Kuroo returned with the nondescript bag of bottles.

"And you're complaining why?" Ennoshita murmured to him, getting a little closer than necessary which should've roused suspicion from the others but seemed to go largely unnoticed. "Don't think you can fool everyone Ryu."

Noya had to disguise his laughter as a coughing fit as Tanaka's face reddened. They hadn't even started drinking, yet there were already some unspoken tensions between certain people. Whether they realised it or not, they were all about to get to know each other way better through this than any cringe-worthy ice-breaker game.


	9. Encouragement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Well, Kuroo-senpai threw a pillow at Tsukishima and then he threw one back and hit Lev--"
> 
> "Heads up!" Takao called, Riko raised an eyebrow as Furihata caught the pillow and sent it in Bokuto's direction.
> 
> "--and it all went downhill from there." He finished with a grin.

Chapter Nine

Encouragement 

 

It began fairly tamely, for a lot of the freshmen it was their first time drinking so they weren't given anything too strong, just enough to set the mood. For the first hour or so everything was going well, no-one had embarrassed themselves too much, no-one had vomited yet and most of them were still reasonably sober.

"So, what kind of drinking game did you have in mind hm?" Kasamatsu asked Himuro, the second year hadn't graced them with anything other than a subtle smile once the first drinks were poured.

It had been interesting to witness the freshmen experiencing their first drinks, the ones who wanted to that was, the more timid individuals of the group declined at first which was fine of course. Most of the third years were drinking and the only second year who had declined was Kenma, no-one dared to try and change his mind.

"Well it's a simple game really, guaranteed to get some people a little wasted though." Himuro replied, gesturing for Kuroo to pass him the bag of bottles, for a 'quick stop at a liquor store' there was a _lot_ in the bag. "It's basically a game of luck."

"Kuro-chin will win then." Murasakibara hummed. "He always wins with luck, it's not fair."

"But I'm not participating Murasakibara-kun." Kuroko piped up.

By this point, everyone was listening to Himuro as he went on to explain the concept of this 'game'. "So we have a number of shot glasses with _colourless_ alcohol in them and then one glass of water. The idea is that on the count of three we all drink and the person with water is the winner and those without are...well drunker."

Kagami rubbed his forehead as everyone exchanged glances. "So you're going to mix them up hm?"

"Well yeah." Himuro shrugged. "That's the idea."

"Well let’s get on with it then!" Tanaka grinned, getting a slightly concerned look from Suga. Out of those present, all the third years agreed to take part, along with Tanaka and Noya. The first years were mostly unsure about how lethal taking shots of straight alcohol was going to be - as opposed to the carefully mixed drinks that Kagami and Yaku had made up for them. They were assured that they didn't _have_ to take part but that didn't stop Kuroo antagonizing Tsukishima.

"C'mon Tsukki~ You gonna join your buddies from third gym or what?"

Tsukishima had no intention of taking part but before he could voice that thought, Hinata jumped in and declared he could handle it. Kageyama sighed heavily and told him he was an idiot, that his size would mean he'd be a lightweight which only further made his unofficial-lover want to prove his point _more_. Soon enough, three out of the four Karasuno freshmen had agreed to play this game of Himuro's. As for the miracles and their posse, Midorima and Kuroko were the only ones declining the offer, Furihata agreed to take part in one round just to be a good sport but stated he wouldn't continue after that, much to the teasing of Kise and Takao.

"Okay, so we've poured the shots. Everyone take _one_ and wait for the count of three." Himuro declared, having poured out the drinks whilst all the bickering had taken place.

"Wait, what is in these--" Yaku asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Either vodka or sake." Kagami shrugged. "Given that jaeger isn't colourless."

"You two bought vodka?!" Yaku turned his attention to Kuroo and Bokuto.

"Psh, yeah? And what?" Kuroo smirked. "Calm down _mom_."

"How? Neither of you are of age and you clearly--"

"Maybe old man Nekomata gave it to us." Kuroo continued, not a trace of guilt on his face despite Yaku's death stare.

"Enough." Akashi stated, sensing that this argument would continue for hours. "With all due respect, does it matter now _how_ they obtained it?"

The Rakuzan captain seemed to settle Yaku's irritation, once everyone had a glass of some form of liquid Himuro counted down and everyone drank. There were a range of different reactions from gagging at the taste to shuddering at the strength of the pure alcohol. The more veteran drinkers were remarkably more composed than their kouhais; Hinata nearly spat his drink back into the glass at first, Kageyama seemed puzzled more than anything and Tsukishima scrunched up his nose in disgust at the now empty glass.

It was quickly evident that Kageyama had the water. He wasn't sure if he was upset or not as Himuro collected all the glasses back and started refilling them. Hinata pouted slightly when Lev teased him about nearly vomiting, the other first year had hardly flinched as he drank and seemed to be in a very upbeat mood.

"Wouldn't be surprised if he's one of the first to go." Kasamatsu sighed quietly, Kise snorted next to him and raised an eyebrow.

"You think he's a lightweight just because of his height? Let's just remember that you're not exactly a heavy-weight champion yourself Yukio~"

"You can hardly say much Kise-kun." Kuroko murmured, startling Kise slightly. "If I remember correctly--" He was cut off by the blond covering his mouth with his hand.

"Kurokocchi please." He hissed, giggling slightly as Kagami gave him a slightly unimpressed look. "Save that kind of talk for when there are less people around eh?"

Kuroko rolled his eyes and nodded, knowing full well Kise would be too drunk to care soon enough anyway. Himuro didn't waste any time in serving the next round, Furihata declined at first but changed his mind quickly much to everyone's surprise, he wouldn't disclose why but the small smile exchanged with Akashi was enough to clue the miracles in.

 

* * *

 

 

"You know, at some point you're going to run out of...whatever's in that bottle." Tanaka hummed, watching as Himuro poured yet another round. The lightweights had started showing in some of them now. Hinata had been getting louder and louder which each drink, but he had also started getting brasher with his affection towards Kageyama, much to the setter's horror.

"Yeah I know." Himuro replied. "But that's when we break out the jaeger."

"The...oh god we're all dead aren't we?" Tanaka rubbed his face, glancing over at Ennoshita who was trying to keep Noya from climbing into his lap, insisting that 'Asahi is literally behind you, go and bother him'.

"I mean, you don't have to drink." Aomine waded into the conversation. "No-one's forcing anyone to do anything, if we were playing truth or dare then it would be another matter..."

"We should play truth or dare!" Kise declared loudly, having overheard Aomine's statement and decided in his half-drunk state that it was the best idea ever.

"No we shouldn't Ryouta." Kasamatsu sighed, rubbing his face.

Suga had been keeping an eye on his kouhais, mainly the freshmen, and had hardly drank after the third round. He was feeling a small buzz and that was good enough for him, with the way Hinata was clinging onto Kageyama's hand, it looked like the co-captain would have to stay up until everyone had passed out to make sure everyone actually _slept_. He was very aware that Daichi was trying to avoid bringing up what had happened last time the captain drank. He almost wanted to bring it up himself so they could talk it out and have things return to normal. Yet the idea of things going back to how they were didn't sit right with him, he wasn't content just being Daichi's best friend and co-captain, he wanted more.

"One final round of this then?" Himuro asked the group, sensing that the novelty of this had worn off and the game had run its course. He was met with grunts and cheers of agreement, filling each glass once more and passing them around. He felt a chin resting on his shoulder as he sat back and watched them all inspect their glasses. Murasakibara hummed and complained he was bored of this game to which Himuro replied that it was over now anyway.

Within a few moments of them downing their drinks, Kuroo stood up - swaying slightly due to the numerous shots he had drank - and picked up the pillow he had been sat on. Daichi and Akaashi gave him a slightly puzzled look but soon their curiosity was answered as Kuro launched the pillow at Tsukishima. The blocker was not amused in the slightest and ignored Suga's calls to not react, throwing the pillow back at the captain. When Lev was on the receiving end of the toss, he let out a startled yelp and - whether on purpose or not - fell into Yaku's lap.

From there, chaos broke out. An all-out pillow fight began, Murasakibara surprisingly, was the one to save the rest of the alcohol from getting spilt as he backed away from his ex-team mates who were now injecting themselves into the conflict. Just like in the water-fight, there were no teams. The usual suspects were at the centre of it all even if they were drunk. Loud laughter and yelps overpowered anyone trying to calm down the fighting and restore order, not that anyone could really be bothered at this point. Both Suga and Yaku gave up eventually, even giving in and reminding the freshmen of why they shouldn't test their patience.

In the disorder of everything, Aomine managed to sneak away and out of the room. He chuckled to himself as he made his way into Nekoma's room, he hadn't intended to react so strongly to Sakurai getting pranked but with the opportunity too good to pass up, he couldn't stop himself. They had played endless pranks on each other in Teikou, Midorima was the main victim but Aomine and Kise had their fair share of humiliation too, and woe betides them if they had been the victim of Akashi once or twice. So it left him in a good position to get revenge on Samurai’s behalf, no-one could be mean to his apologetic mushroom but him. Who would even want to be mean to such a timid person anyway? Aomine didn't get it.

He was pretty sure Kuroo was responsible. So that was his reasoning behind it, he knew the only one who'd think of him pranking the captain would be Kasamatsu so he was fairly confident he wouldn't get caught. That, and Kuroo would probably be too drunk to notice at first, he'd notice in the morning probably, and that was what made it such a good act of revenge.

 

* * *

 

 

The girls wanted nothing to do with whatever the boys were doing, Momoi knew all too well how stupid things could get with the miracles all drinking, not to mention how the third years would no doubt convince them to do more stupid things. Kiyoko was in agreement that with guys like Kuroo and Bokuto around anything could happen, so the four of them retired to their room to avoid being dragged into the chaos.

Momoi was the first to propose that they indulge themselves in the typical teenage girl slumber party activity of braiding each other's hair. Kiyoko let her run her fingers through her hair, listening to Riko telling them stories of how she had to be convinced by her team to become their coach in the first place.

"So there's a penalty if they lose?" Yachi clarified, hugging a pillow as she watched Momoi's delicate fingers working to braid Kiyoko's hair.

"Yeah, they have to strip naked and then confess who they love from the school roof."

Momoi giggled. "Can you imagine it though? Kagamin confessing that he loves Tetsu-kun."

"What if they don't love anyone?" Yachi asked. "And didn't they lose recently?"

"The loss was cruel enough I thought, but if they lose this Winter Cup then I'll make them do it." Riko shrugged. "Besides, it started out as a way the second years tried to convince me to be the coach in the first place. They only have themselves to blame in all honesty."

"You have an interesting way of coaching them I guess." Kiyoko smiled. "We leave most of it up to Ukai-sensei and Takeda-sensei."

"Oh yeah, I'm like that at Touou. I gather the data on our opponents and from attack plans based on their weaknesses. it infuriated Riko-chan to no end when I saw through Tetsu's vanishing drive." Momoi remarked.

"Hyuuga still thinks I sold you the information." Riko sighed with a slight smile. "He complained that I didn't get any info in return."

Momoi laughed, letting go of Kiyoko's finished braid and starting on the second. "So how did you end up becoming managers?"

Yachi laughed nervously, feeling put on the spot as Kiyoko simply replied that she was recruited by the former coach to help out with day to day errands, but only really took over as manager when the previous coach left and Suga requested her assistance. Momoi and Riko nodded in acknowledgement as the third year finished.

"I really see the team growing little by little each day, even the third years are still learning new things as much as the freshmen." She smiled.

"Nawh, that's nice. I wish my third years would be like that. Imayoshi is just creepy most of the time..," Momoi sighed. "So Yacchan what about you?"

Yachi felt her face heat up as she realised that she'd have to recount how Kiyoko approached her and she had a mental block and wasn't able to say no. She didn't want to outwardly admit that she found Kiyoko attractive, she felt way too embarrassed about it; having a crush on her senpai. Instead she told them how her mother had encouraged her and how her graphic design had helped the club, and also how she had tutored both Hinata and Kageyama before the summer camp.

"Huh, I remember we had to tutor Kagami once. It was a disaster really but somehow he passed." Riko sighed.

Kiyoko was about to reply when there was a commotion in the hallway, it sounded like Hinata and Lev but really it could be any of them. Momoi and Yachi exchanged a look as Riko got up with a loud sigh and walked to the door. The brunette was probably the most confident about wandering out into the hallway in just a tank top and shorts, she wasn't exactly afraid of threatening any of the guys with violence.

She found that the boy's pillow fight had spilt out into the hallway, and that they were in various states of being drunk.

"Oh--hey coach." Furihata greeted, his face was red but he seemed to be relatively sober in comparison to the others.

"So what happened?" Riko asked, folding her arms across her chest as she watched Kise duck to avoid a flying pillow, the pillow then hitting Midorima in the face.

"Well, Kuroo-senpai threw a pillow at Tsukishima and then he threw one back and hit Lev--"

"Heads up!" Takao called, Riko raised an eyebrow as Furihata caught the pillow and sent it in Bokuto's direction.

"--and it all went downhill from there." He finished with a grin.

"A pillow fight?" Riko clarified. "And not a shaving foam fight? Sheesh guys, go big or go home amiright?"

Furihata gave her a puzzled look as she turned and went back to the room. He was tugged from his confusion by a pillow hitting his side. He laughed as he found it had come from none other than his team's ace, he chose to throw it in the general direction of Hinata before ducking back into the war-zone of a room. He quickly found Kagami and shared Riko's idea with him, the ace took a few moments to register what Furihata had said but in his somewhat drunk state it sounded like the best idea ever. He grabbed Aomine at the next opportunity and told him to find some so they could get the upper hand on this war.

The co-captain of Karasuno had given up trying to retain order, he was now far too concerned with Daichi being subdued and seemingly trying to avoid him. In a brief pause of the conflict, Suga tugged Daichi aside and tried to get a gauge for how wasted he was, the captain averted his gaze as he felt Suga's hands take his.

"You okay? I mean after last time, you're not gonna need me to carry you back to bed again are you?" Suga asked with a slight smile. There was definitely something amiss here and he wasn't about to let it slide again. The pillow fight kicked up again but they were nowhere near the epicentre so Daichi wasn't going to be able to escape the co-captain's interrogation. He seemed very distracted as Suga gently rubbed a thumb over his knuckles, finally meeting the other's eyes and nodding slightly.

"Yeah, I'm good Koushi." He spoke quietly, it was sort of strange for Suga to hear the usually loud and proud captain speaking so softly.

"Do you want to get some air?" Suga baited, it had actually become somewhat stuffy in the room due to the dying heat of the day and the physical activity. He also wanted to see if Daichi would object to being alone with him whilst he was tipsy again. The captain nodded, Suga released his hand and they carefully made their way around the chaos of the pillow fight and out into the hallway. No-one seemed to notice them leaving which gave them both a little sense of relief.

Despite it being an unfamiliar school, they found their way up to the roof. The excitable laughter and yelling could still be heard in the otherwise quiet school as they leaned on the railing. The night air was warm but there was a slight breeze that ruffled their shirts whenever it passed them by, the cicadas were filling the silence between the two of them as the final traces of daylight faded away and the clear sky began to darken.

"So, last summer training camp." Suga mused, wanting to get a conversation going before he pried into Daichi's strange behaviour over the past day. "Feel old yet?"

Daichi snorted. "Kinda, I'm gonna miss it y'know. In a way I envy Ennoshita and Tanaka, they get to take over with a strong team at their disposal."

The setter nodded in agreement, he didn't really want to dwell on all these 'lasts' as he often called Asahi out on it, yet it seemed fitting to do so in that moment as the two of them stood there overlooking the surrounding suburbs. The distant lights of Tokyo glowed on the horizon, the big city where they'd play in the final matches, assuming they got that far.

"We still got time with them though." Suga hummed, turning around and leaning back against the railing, focusing his sight on the captain's calm expression as he continued to watch the horizon. "And each other."

The last part of his statement caught the other's attention. He glanced at Suga and smiled, it was a familiar, fond smile that could melt the setter's heart easily enough. As with most captains and co-captains, they had that close bond that came with working together to lead a team, but sometimes to them it felt like their bond was something _different_. The only way Suga could describe it was that it was somewhat similar to the bond Kageyama and Hinata shared.

"Yeah." Daichi murmured, the alcohol was starting to fade a little, not that he had seemed affected much by it. They were both feeling that warm buzz that came with drinking, but now they were alone and starting to come to their senses. "Still got time."

There were a few moments of silence between them, lost to their own little worlds inside their minds before Suga sighed loudly and stepped away from the railing. He almost didn't want to broach the subject now, to shatter the calm atmosphere, but if he didn't then who knew how much longer they'd continue down this path.

"Daichi?" He spoke softly, causing the other to turn and face him, there seemed to be no trace of the hesitation from before they got to the roof. Whether it was the alcohol wearing off or whether they were just that comfortable, he seemed more relaxed than before which gave Suga some comfort.

"Yeah?" Daichi replied, his stomach was twisting slightly. He knew better than to try and fool Suga into thinking he wasn't nervous, the fact that Suga was the most observant person he knew meant that the setter had probably already put all the pieces together and was about to call him out on it all. In a way he _wanted_ it to happen like that. They'd known each other for years, they'd laughed and cried together on multiple occasions, won and lost vital games, whenever one of them needed picking up the other was always there.

That's just how it was with them, that's how it had always been and how it always should be.

"...so about the other night--"

Daichi didn't expect Suga to jump straight to the point, the co-captain tended to dance around a subject first before delivering a sucker punch - sometimes literally - to the stomach. He must've looked panicked as Suga stopped and gave him a reassuring smile, stepping forward and taking hold of both his hands.

"What about it?" He asked, prompting hazel eyes to gaze at him. There was a slight pause before Suga giggled slightly and shook his head.

"You were very...well drunk and you asked me to stay with you until you fell asleep." Suga recounted. "You don't remember what you said do you?"

This was news to Daichi, he remembered Suga helping him to bed but he didn't recall anything else other than the other's gentle touch to his cheek. He slowly shook his head, squeezing the calloused hands as he swallowed.

"Well, once you were in bed, I was going to leave when you caught my hand and tugged me to stay. So I did, I let you hold my hand the entire time as you mumbled in your drunk state." Suga's fond smile didn't waver as he continued. "And at one point, you tugged me to lean down so you could tell me 'a secret'--"

Daichi could feel his face getting redder and redder as Suga kept talking, he could also see that Suga was getting more and more flustered despite his calm expression. He was dreading what he had said now.

"W-What secret?" Daichi nervously laughed, wanting to avert his gaze but there was no way he could tear his gaze away from Suga now.

The setter raised an eyebrow before giggling. "Well you passed out before you told me, I was wondering if you would enlighten me now?"

The captain wanted to scream and laugh at the same time, he settled for shaking his head in defeat. Whether he intended to or not, Suga now knew he was hiding something. It dawned on him that they had been holding hands the entire time and neither of them showed any sign of wanting to stop anytime soon, if anything Suga had moved closer and barely needed to speak above a whisper to be heard. It would be so easy for Daichi to lean forward and enlighten Suga in a way he wasn't expecting.

Or maybe he _was_ expecting it.

These mind games were not fun for Daichi and he made a mental note to ask Suga to save his social experiments for the freshmen.

"Uh, yeah." He said without thinking, getting a slightly surprised look from the other.

"...I won't tell anyone your secret don't worry~" Suga hummed, his smile turning a little mischievous, it was almost like they were back in junior high school, in a weird way it put Daichi at ease.

"Koushi..." He breathed, suddenly not sure how to word his feelings.

His rash idea to just go for a kiss was looking more and more attractive as Suga waited patiently, tilting his head to the side and smiling. In a small burst of courage, he let go of Suga's hand to shakily reach up and cup his face. The setter leaned into his touch, blinking slowly. If nothing else, it was confirmation that he was right; Suga had figured it out long before they stepped onto the roof that night.

"Hmm?" Suga hummed again, squeezing the hand he was still holding. "Your hand is soft Daichi, have you been borrowing that moisturizer from Kiyoko-san again?"

Daichi laughed. "That was _one_ time Kou, and don't you dare tell the freshmen about it."

"You'll have to stop me then." Suga teased, raising an eyebrow.

It was a good enough hint for the captain, with only a little hesitation, he leaned in and pressed his lips to Suga's. A hand running up his arm and pulling on his shoulder made him drop Suga's other hand and gently grab his waist, pulling him closer and bumping his forehead against the other's. Suga broke the kiss with a giggle, his hand trailing down Daichi's back as he peppered his cheeks with slow, soft kisses. The captain sighed in content as he nuzzled Suga's neck, no words needed to be said in that moment as the clear sky began to cloud over, the heat in the air becoming more noticeable yet neither of them caring. Daichi could feel Suga's heart racing as he held the setter close to him, burying his face in the silver locks that smelt faintly of cinnamon, that familiar scent of his best friend that always made him feel at home.

"Koushi?"

"Yes?" Suga whispered.

"...how are we going to tell the team?"

Suga giggled. "They'll take it in their stride. I expect they'll make a bigger fuss over Hinata and Kageyama anyway."

"Wait, _what_?"

 

* * *

 

 

Yaku looked like he was going to have kittens at the scene before him. Someone, and he wasn't sure _who_ but he had his suspicions, had found some cans of shaving foam and what had started as a simple pillow fight had evolved into a war of the foam. He wasn't sure if it was even going to come off the walls without staining them. Yet, he didn't try to stop it, he was far too engrossed in trying to keep a drunk Lev from tripping over his own bambi-like legs.

"Yaku-chan!" Lev slurred, rubbing his cheek against the libero's shoulder like a literal oversized cat.

"Yes, that's me. What do you want Lev?" Yaku sighed, he somewhat wanted to find the jaeger and drink himself stupid in order to make it through the next few hours without killing anyone.

"I like you Yaku-chan~"

There was an uncomfortable feeling in Yaku's chest, it was like he was finding this behaviour...endearing? He was thankful Noya had dragged Asahi somewhere else to do god only knew - Yaku didn't want or need to know - and that Kuroo was terrorizing Akaashi, he didn't need either of them shooting him knowing smirks.

"...I like you too Lev--when you're not being annoying." Yaku hastily added, the only person in earshot was Kasamatsu who raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"Yay~ Oh, Yaku-chan--"

"Lev quit putting 'chan' on the end of my name."

"OH okay!"

Lev was looking up at Yaku with wide eyes and a smile that could only mean trouble. The libero was slightly distracted by the sudden escalation of yelling and shaving foam being fired across the hallway. Midorima had tried to stay as far away from all the mischief as possible but had been dragged into it when Akashi Seijuurou of all people snuck up behind him and sprayed foam down the back of his shirt. The captain had scampered away laughing and the former co-captain had sunk to the act of petty revenge, much to Aomine and Kise's amusement.

"Shin-chan you looked mildly annoyed." Takao remarked, dodging a pillow thrown at him by Himuro.

"That's one way of putting it." Midorima replied, watching Akashi use Kuroo as a shield from Kise trying to hit him with a pillow.

For someone who was incredibly unagile when drunk, Kuroo was managing to stay standing for most of this war, mainly down to Bokuto picking him up every few moments. Rather than take on his new rivals though, Kuroo's sights had been firmly set on Akaashi. The way the setter had hardly reacted earlier to his puns and then accused him of pranking Tsukishima had gotten Kuroo's mind whirling.

To most, him tripping and falling on top of Akaashi, pinning the setter to the floor was nothing more than an accident. When he remained caging the smaller boy to the floor though, a few heads began to turn.

"Kuro-san, get off me please." Akaashi sighed, the heat in his cheeks betraying him as well as his own compromised thought process. Kuroo was very close, _too_ close. He was loyal to Bokuto, he would never think of cheating, but he could still admire the other captain's build when it was currently pinning him to the floor; the firm shoulders and toned arms that were keeping the captain from falling completely on top of him and the stupid drunk smirk on his face two name a few aspects.

Kuroo simply raised an eyebrow, not moving even as Akaashi stared him down. Bokuto offered Kuroo a hand, the captain eventually took it and Akaashi let out a breath he wasn't aware he had been holding in. When he was helped off the floor by Bokuto he clung to his lover's arm a little tighter than usual, it didn't go unnoticed.

"Something wrong Keiji?" Bokuto murmured, still very alert despite the intoxication.

"...I'll tell you later." Akaashi replied confidently, though deep down his conversation with Kenma was making him feel a little uneasy about bringing up the subject.

Bokuto nodded, turning his attention back to the foam war but not before leaning down and pressing a quick kiss to Akaashi's lips in an effort to calm the other down. Someone somewhere wolf-whistled, and Akaashi wanted the ground to swallow him up.

 


	10. Rip in Pepperoni

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Congratulations, your not-boyfriend is an idiot." Suga whispered in his ear which made the blush on his cheeks worse because _god dammit his seniors are making fun of him now._
> 
> "Thanks." Ennoshita breathed. "I regret making this bet now."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1) I have no clue what this chapter even is, there's a bit of everything in here I'm sure.  
> 2) Pizza parties are gr8 until someone nearly dies by pizza overload. #TrueStory

Chapter Ten

Rip in Pepperoni

 

The distant rumble of thunder roused Noya from his slumber, the room was quiet and warm and it was still reasonably early. He rolled over and buried his face in the familiar shirt the his lover wore to bed, Asahi's arm was wrapped protectively around him keeping him close as he continued to sleep. Noya could hear the rain now, pattering against the window pane, it made laying there with Asahi seem all the more peaceful, a stark contrast to his usual energetic mood. It was one of the many things he loved about being with the ace, they frequently lay in bed together just listening to the sound of the rain or each other's breathing. It was like coming down off a major high after a game as Asahi would trace each of Noya's bruises with his fingers, silently wishing that the libero would be more careful.

"Asahi..." Noya whispered, knowing the ace was probably close to waking up. He loved being cuddled by the other but there was always a temptation to turn it not-so-innocent, and when they were staying in the same room as several other people, playing into that temptation was a _bad_ idea.

The thunder in the distance seemed to be working with him too, as Asahi's closed eyelids fluttered slightly at another rumble. Noya hummed quietly, pressing his forehead to the other's chest. He could feel the steady heartbeat of the ace, the so called glass-heart. A hand running through his hair tipped him off to the fact Asahi was waking up. Slowly, he let the hand coax him back, looking up he caught sight of the sleepy smile that made him feel all giddy inside.

"Mornin'." He greeted, mirroring the smile as Asahi blinked slowly. His first instinct was to reach up and run his fingers through the long brown locks of hair that were usually kept tied in a tight bun, it came with the added bonus of coaxing the ace to lean down into a lazy kiss.

"Morning Yu." Asahi breathed as he pulled away and rested his head on the pillow again.

"Do you hear the thunder?" Noya asked, his fingers still threading through the other's hair.

"Mmhm. Probably means we'll be stuck inside all day."

Noya pouted slightly. "Someone's gonna make us clean all day probably."

Asahi chuckled, stopping abruptly when they heard someone else beginning to stir. Noya propped himself up on an elbow to see who it was. For the first time he saw how wrecked the room was; the glasses they had been drinking out of were scattered everywhere, shaving foam had solidified on the walls and the floor, the door was wide open and he could see into Nekoma's room across the hallway. He also noted how Suga was definitely not in his bed.

"Who is it?" Asahi whispered.

"Just that Kagami dude I think." Noya replied. "But Suga-san isn't in his bed."

Asahi raised an eyebrow, but then remembered seeing the two third years of Karasuno sneak off just after the pillow fight broke out and everything clicked. He chuckled again, attracting Noya's attention.

"What?"

"Hm? Oh, he's probably with Daichi." Asahi answered. "Don't worry Yu." He could tell the libero hadn't figured it out yet but he would in due course. Sounds of life from the Nekoma room filtered through the two open doors, the unmistakable sound of someone being hungover to be more accurate.

Kasamatsu's head ached like hell, he groaned as he sat up and his stomach twisted with the movement. Glancing beside him at the blond in his futon, he wasn't really that surprised. Figuring that he wouldn't be the only one who woke up with a headache - at least it was _just_ a headache - he slowly stood up and started making his way to the kitchen to get some water. He paused before he even got to the door as he took in the various post-drinking sleeping arrangement changes.

He was pretty sure the floor wasn't supposed to be wet, or cold, or littered with small chunks of ice.

Somewhere in his hungover mind, he remembered the conversation with Aomine and then he sighed heavily. Without trying to seem too suspicious, he made his way to Kuroo's futon, sure enough the entire bed was cold and damp and yet Kuroo was still sleeping in it.

The team mom - as Kise called it - inside him told him he should make the other captain aware of his current plight, yet at the same time he somewhat had to side with Aomine on this one. Something about Kuroo had set him on edge from the start, and it wasn't entirely to do with the resemblance to Imayoshi.

He shrugged and continued down to the kitchen, once he had shaken the sleep from his system and drank a few small glasses of water, he felt that food was in order. He wasn't alone for long, he was surprised that the first awake person he saw was Kageyama, but then his attention got directed elsewhere.

"...is that a lovebite on your neck?" He asked as the first year avoided looking him in the eye. Kageyama wasn't exactly the most open individual but throughout their time together Kasamatsu had managed to somewhat befriend the setter. Or maybe it was because the person Kageyama usually went to was in bed with his captain.

"...maybe." Kageyama replied quietly, a furious blush on his cheeks.

Kasamatsu raised an eyebrow, continuing to crack eggs into a frying pan. "Well, how did that happen hm?" He was trying to keep the conversation light-hearted, there was no sense lecturing the first year - Suga would have more than enough to say probably - especially when he was clearly embarrassed about it.

"Dumbass Hinata." Was the reply.

The third year chuckled, seeing some of himself in the setter. "I know that feeling. Ryouta's done the same to me on occasion, of course I had to remind him that I was his captain as well as his boyfriend. Still got the rest of our team teasing me for a few days until it went away."

Kageyama cracked a small smile. "How...how do I get rid of it?"

The third year hummed in thought, Kise had an array of ways to hide a lovebite but he personally didn't know any of them. "I know make up works to hide it, but good luck with that."

The very real possibility that his team would find out before he could hide it was eating away at Kageyama. "Do you think...that Momoi girl would help me hide it?"

Kasamatsu had to stop himself bursting into laughter. "Uh, probably. But she'd also ask a million questions in the process."

Their conversation was cut short by the sound of talking echoing down the hallway. Kageyama looked spooked as Tsukishima and Yamaguchi entered the room, both seeming completely fine despite last night's drinking. Kasamatsu said nothing as the freshmen approached and greeted him, merely nodding in reply as Tsukishima immediately noticed the small but very obvious dark mark on Kageyama's neck.

"Sh-Shut up." Kageyama stated before the other could even open his mouth, then again the smirk said it all really.

"Oh? Is the king feeling embarrassed?"

"Knock it off." Kageyama glared, the furious blush on his cheeks spreading to his neck, only further emphasising the mark.

"Who was it though?"

Yamaguchi was in two minds about this; one was that he felt sorry for Kageyama being teased for something that clearly happened whilst he was drunk, the other was that he found himself feeling slightly envious of the attention that it was getting him from Tsukishima.

"None of your damn business."

Kasamatsu sighed. "Alright quit it." He scolded. "Leave him alone, I'm sure you're probably gonna make some dumb choices when you're drunk." He gestured to Tsukishima with the spatula in his hand.

"Tsk, maybe alcohol doesn't affect me." Tsukishima replied with a shrug. "And maybe I can handle myself better."

Kageyama growled slightly, Kasamatsu gave him a stern glare that made him rethink tackling the other. Their saving grace came in form of Himuro and Kagami appearing and stating they were going to make breakfast before Murasakibara woke up. Neither of them gave Kageyama's neck a second glance, instead they put all the freshmen to use in helping them to cook. As Kageyama listened to Himuro's instructions, he noticed that the second year had a mark just peeking up from under his shirt collar, the fact that he wasn't alone in this gave him just that little extra comfort. Yet he still dreaded everyone finding out, even more so; he dreaded having to confront Hinata about it.

 

* * *

 

 

"Eh? What do you mean your bed is wet?" Bokuto asked, rubbing his sleepy eyes as Kuroo stood at the foot of his futon waving his arms in an over-dramatic fashion. Most of the others had long gone to find food leaving the usual four in the room.

"My futon is soaking Bo!" Kuroo repeated, gesturing to the damp bedding. "And cold!"

"Should've made it to the restroom in time then." Bokuto remarked, trailing a hand up Akaashi's thigh underneath the blankets of their shared futon. The setter showed no reaction other than the slight hitch in his breathing.

"Bo!" Kuroo exclaimed, turning to Kenma who had escaped the fiasco by sleeping in his own futon for the first time in days. "You believe me right?"

"Clearly, you have been pranked Kuro." Kenma replied, tugging on the ends of his jacket sleeves. "So don't yell at us when someone else is the culprit."

Bokuto laughed, burying his face in Akaashi's hair as Kuroo looked dumbstruck at his childhood friend. The Nekoma captain had awoken in a cold, damp bed and had immediately started protesting.

"Maybe it's the same person who framed you." Akaashi sighed, feeling Bokuto's hand continuing to trail up his thigh. "Maybe they pranked you as revenge."

"Oho a prank war?" Bokuto seemed suddenly more alert.

"Bokuto, no." Akaashi stated.

"Bokuto, yes." Kuroo smirked, all trace of irritation gone from him as he considered this challenge. "Like hell am I losing."

"You don't even know who did it--" Akaashi shifted slightly, his voice dying in his throat as Bokuto's hand brushed between his legs. The captain kissed his jawline as Kuroo seemed oblivious to what was happening, focused more on pacing the room in thought.

Kenma rolled his eyes, deciding to put Kuroo out of his misery. "It was Aomine."

"eh?"

"Aomine. The miracle. He's annoyed because he thinks you drew cat whiskers on Sakurai."

"But I didn't!" Kuroo pointed out. "Wait, who did then?"

Kenma shrugged. "In any case, he put ice cubes in your futon."

"And you didn't tell me _why_?"

"You were drunk. I told you that sleeping in your futon would be a bad idea but you just hugged me really tightly and Kai had to get you off me."

Bokuto sniggered, Akaashi was hoping that the other two wouldn't catch on to how obvious Bokuto was being as he lay there blushing like a school girl.

"In any case, I'm getting breakfast. I suggest you come too Kuro, Yaku-san will be worried."

Kuroo sighed, waving in farewell to Bokuto and Akaashi as he followed the setter out of the room. Within five seconds of the door being closed behind them, Akaashi let out a small whimper.

"That was unfair Koutarou." He murmured, feeling hot all over as Bokuto lightly nibbled on his ear lobe, his hand was still settled between the setter's legs and he was enjoying how worked up Akaashi was getting over it all.

"You were the one who moved." Bokuto hummed, applying a tiny bit more pressure and getting another whimper out of the other.

"What do you want from me?" Akaashi craned his neck to look at Bokuto, golden eyes gazed at him and a gentle but slightly mischievous smile greeted him.

"Nothing Keiji." He whispered, pecking the other's lips. "Just having a bit of fun." He continued, moving his hand away.

Akaashi was too tired and wound up to simply let this slide. He narrowed his eyes before rolling over and forcing the larger male onto his back, straddling his waist as Bokuto raised an eyebrow. This was his plan all along and Akaashi somehow knew it.

"Don't push me Kou." Akaashi murmured, leaning down and pressing his lips against the other's smirk. "We're not doing it whilst _on camp_."

Bokuto laughed, running a hand through Akaashi's hair. "That's because we're missing someone aren't we?"

The setter felt the blood rush to his cheeks, he didn't remember telling Bokuto any of his recent thoughts, he remembered last night well enough to know that he hadn't made any moves on Kuroo whatsoever, yet somewhere along the way Bokuto had figured it out?

"Ohoho...so I'm right eh?" Bokuto's mischievous demeanour dropped as he sat up and became much more gentle, cradling Akaashi's face in his hands and smiling softly. "I can read you just as well as you can read me remember."

Akaashi felt slightly ashamed for not being more upfront, he wanted to avert his gaze but Bokuto kept his face mere inches away from his own.

"...maybe." Akaashi finally admitted. The conversation with Kenma had been enough to assure him that with the right explanation, Kuroo would be accepting of this strange proposition. After all it was like he thought; the two captains spent enough time with each other already that it wouldn't make much of a difference.

"Hm? Maybe what Keiji?" Bokuto pressed. "Talk to me."

It was a strange thing to try and verbalise; that he wanted to try dating both of them, that he felt a stronger connection to Bokuto yet found Kuroo intriguing enough to want to include him in their relationship.

"It's not just a sex thing." He stated quietly, running his fingers over Bokuto's exposed collarbone. "...I want to stress that above all else."

Bokuto nodded, not making a move as the second year bit on his lip in thought. The setter was clearly flustered but still relatively calm as he swallowed and held the other's gaze.

"I love you Koutarou, and that won't change at all, but I'm curious about..." he trailed off, feeling the blush creeping over his cheeks again. "...what it would be like to date Kuroo."

Bokuto raised an eyebrow, he was interested in why Akaashi was curious in dating the other captain, what was it about Kuroo that tempted him? What was he asking for?

"You want an open relationship so you can date him?" Bokuto asked quietly.

Akaashi shook his head. "No. I...I want to date both of you...at once."

Struggling to wrap his head around the entire concept, Bokuto leaned back on one of his hands in thought. Akaashi nervously watched as the ace stared at the ceiling. True, he did find Kuroo attractive, the two of them were best friends just like he and Akaashi were, but he wasn't sure if he was capable of sharing his setter with another captain without feeling jealous.

"...I'm not sure." He murmured. "You know how possessive I am Keiji." He sighed, sitting back up and wrapping his arms around Akaashi in a tight embrace. He could see the embarrassment in the other's eyes and he felt a pang of guilt. "But, if you want to try it out then...we'll talk to him about it."

"You're okay with this?" Akaashi whispered.

"...not the word I would use, more 'open to trying'." He smiled in reply. "You're still my setter and my boyfriend."

Rain on the window filled the silence, the thunderstorm that had been in the distance that morning was creeping closer, it was clear that today would be an inside day. Akaashi leaned against Bokuto, burying his face in the ace's neck and sighing. They sat there for a few moments, Bokuto holding his lover closer to him and not showing any sign of letting him go. Sounds of people returning from breakfast didn't deter them, Akaashi merely pulled away and offered a smile to the captain.

"You're not serious about this prank war are you?" He asked.

"Hmm...so what if I am?" Bokuto replied.

"It'll only lead to trouble."

"Trouble is fun though Keiji." His voice dropped to a whisper as he leaned closer to the other's ear. "And you can punish me for it later."

The door opening startled Akaashi, flustered face and all, and made Bokuto laugh. Aomine raised an eyebrow but said nothing, he was used to walking in on people by now. He did find the sight of Kuroo's soaked bedding amusing, but he wasn't about to give himself away that quickly.

 

* * *

 

 

"So what do we do?" Suga sighed, staring out the window at the torrential downpour with Kiyoko and Riko. A loud rumble of thunder accompanied a flash of lightning, clearly no-one was going out today.

"Food is always a good idea." Riko replied.

"Why don't we get everyone together and ask them?" Kiyoko suggested.

Riko nodded and left the two third years to continue watching the rain. Kiyoko didn't wait more than a few moments before breaking the silence. "So you and Daichi seem happy today."

Suga's cheeks tinted pink ever so slightly. "Uh, yeah." He smiled, knowing full well that Kiyoko could see past his façade. "We snuck off last night whilst the pillow fight was happening and I...confronted him about it."

"I'm glad, you two have always been inseparable." She smiled back. "How are the freshmen doing?"

"Kageyama has a lovebite, that's clear enough for me. Not sure what's going on with Tsukishima though."

"Well there's still alcohol left over so I expect there'll be another drunk night on the cards..." Kiyoko hummed, turning and looking at the miracles gathered around listening to Riko and Momoi. "Maybe that'll spur something."

"Even if it does, we have to be careful. Once we're back at school we have the preliminaries to prepare for. We can't have tension between them for that."

Kiyoko nodded. "Leave it to me Koushi, I'll talk to Yamaguchi--or rather, I'll get Yachi to do it, she seems close to him."

Another loud clap of thunder prompted a small murmur from the students gathered in the dining hall, Suga and Kiyoko broke off their conversation and joined the group. Everyone seemed more than happy to do something food-related, but trying not to let it turn into a competition was proving difficult with the miracles present. After a lot of back and forth, Hinata declared that he wanted to make pizza, which quickly escalated into 'let’s have a pizza party'. After googling the basic ingredients of a pizza, Yaku reported they had enough stocked up food to make a few but not quite enough for individual pizzas. Thus began the splitting into 'teams' and the friendly rivalry erupting again.

Kagami immediately took charge of dishing out the ingredients, Takao started antagonising Kageyama after he noticed the lovebite on his neck, getting scolded by both Midorima and Kasamatsu for being immature, Kuroo was unusually quiet until Lev started pestering him about whether or not their pizza should be shaped like a cat. Bokuto was already declaring that his pizza would be the best whilst Hinata and Noya were excitedly listing off all the toppings they were going to go for.

"Okay, everyone gets twenty minutes to make their pizza." Momoi declared, the competitive natures of everyone getting the better of her. "Then everyone has to help clean up all the shaving foam from last night whilst they cook."

"Aw what the hell _mom_." Aomine sighed.

"Shut up Dai-chan, you're the one who started it."

"Riko suggested it in the first place!" Kagami protested as he finished bringing out all the ingredients.

"Enough! Your time starts now." Riko cut in.

There was a mad scramble as the pizza making got underway, a fair amount of bickering took place as the teams disagreed with one another about which toppings to use and how to arrange them, no-one was even sure how they were meant to 'win' but that was long forgotten as acts of sabotage began to occur.

"What the fuck Bo!" Kuroo protested as Bokuto made off with their bowl of grated cheese. "Lev go get it back!"

The first year scrambled to catch the captain, reaching the Fukurodani table and seizing not only the cheese but the mushrooms too. Whilst Nekoma was busy trying to recapture their cheese, the miracles were arguing with Kagami and Himuro about whether to make it an American style pizza or not. Murasakibara kept wanting to add sweets to it despite Akashi stating that chocolate pizza wasn't on any menu he had heard of, Sakurai was getting more and more flustered as he found himself being pushed against Aomine in the cramped space around the table, only made worse when Aomine wrapped an arm around his waist to keep him from falling.

"Oi Kuroko, go and steal some teriyaki from Karasuno." Kagami murmured.

"But they just had theirs stolen by Bokuto." Kuroko replied.

"Well go and steal theirs too!"

Karasuno themselves were having a whale of a time, Noya and Tanaka were in full swing decorating the pizza as the third years largely sat back and watched, Suga was not subtle in the slightest as he rested his head on Daichi's shoulder and entwined their fingers. Kageyama was being much more subdued than normal as he watched Hinata carry on topping the pizza without a care in the world, Yamaguchi was starting to put himself more out there as the second years encouraged him to get involved. The team were jarred from their creation by Kise appearing and stealing some of their precious pieces of chicken.

"Kise what the hell?!" Hinata called in protest as the blond flashed a peace sign at him and gave the meat to Takao.

"Do they have to bicker over everything..." Riko sighed as Yachi giggled.

"Boys will be boys." Kiyoko shrugged.

"Which is exactly why dating a girl is better." Momoi remarked, successfully getting Riko blushing.

"Hm, I can see the appeal." Kiyoko replied, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Are you straight?"

"Satsuki you can't just ask people if they're straight!" Riko exclaimed.

"Why not?"

"And they were saying the boys bicker..." Kiyoko remarked to Yachi who giggled nervously, avoiding answering the question as Momoi's attention got stolen by watching Aomine practically caging Sakurai against the table without a care in the world. "Aren't you trying to get your former captain with someone?"

"hm? Oh yeah Akashi." Momoi giggled. "He's a little harder to fool but I have a plan. Oh and did you hear that our little prank on Sakurai has erupted into a prank war? Boys are so simple to rile up."

Yachi was in awe as Kiyoko laughed, it wasn't a delicate little giggle that she usually came out with, it was a laugh that made her hug her stomach. She hadn't been involved in the prank on Sakurai but by the sound of it, Kiyoko found it amusing nonetheless. Momoi and Riko exchanged a knowing glance as they noted the first year's clear adoration when the third year recomposed herself she explained that she kinda knew this would happen and that Momoi seeming so surprised just amused her greatly.

"Huh? So you knew this would happen?" Momoi continued.

"Yeah, once you target Kuroo-senpai for a prank he's going to repay that favour. I'd honestly be a bit nervous if I was Aomine."

"Well Dai-chan would probably say something like 'the only one who can prank me is me' so I'm not worried."

"We'll see."

The Nekoma table declaring they were done with their pizza cut the conversation short, before the pizza could even be put in the oven, Fukurodani started shouting that they were done too. Riko quickly stepped in and told everyone to hurry up and start cleaning up the mess from the night before whilst Yachi and Kiyoko supervised the oven. Even with four large pizzas being made, there were a lot of left over ingredients, which was when Tanaka and Noya had 'the best idea _ever_ '.

Ennoshita rubbed his forehead as he watched the two idiots he called teammates carefully make up another pizza base and then layer up all the leftover toppings. The result was some kind of meat mountain which they then put another base on top of to create some kind of Frankenstein pizza pie.

"And you're going to eat that right?" Ennoshita asked Tanaka as Noya bounded off to tell Asahi, leaving the two second years looking at this abomination of a 'pizza'.

"Hell yeah." Tanaka grinned. "Why, you wanna make a bet?"

The other smirked slightly, knowing that making a bet over this would be almost certain victory for him. "Alright Ryu. We'll make a bet."

"If I don't manage to eat this entire thing, I'll do everything you say for the rest of the trip." Tanaka offered. "Including overseeing the freshmen."

"And if you do?" Ennoshita asked.

"If I do..." Tanaka rubbed his chin as he glanced around to confirm they were out of earshot of everyone else before stepping a little closer to the other. "You kiss me, _captain_."

Ennoshita didn't even bother correcting him, there'd be no need to as there was _no_ way Tanaka would eat all of it. "You're on, Ryu." He replied with a smirk, settling it with a handshake between them.

 

* * *

 

 

"What the actual fuck is _that_?" Aomine made a disgusted face as the abomination that Noya and Tanaka had created came out of the oven. "It's _dripping_ what is it?!"

Kise looked rather pale as the thing that was meant to be a pizza was set on the table, it looked like someone had simply put two pancakes on top of one another and baked them. Tanaka and Noya exchanged a glance as Kiyoko presented him with a knife to cut it into slices.

"It's a pizza pie!" Hinata stated.

"And I'm eating all of it." Tanaka declared.

"Eh? No fair I want some!" Noya pouted.

"Yeah but Ennoshita and I have a bet going."

Suga and Daichi glanced at Ennoshita with raised eyebrows as if to say 'please explain'. Little did they know Tanaka was about to declare to everyone what the bet entailed.

"If I eat all this then he has to kiss me."

"Wait, he has a thing for you?"

Ennoshita somewhat regretted his choice to make the bet but tried to laugh it off as Tanaka sat down and started cutting the thing - it couldn't be called a pizza anymore - into manageable slices. The toppings started oozing out so a large spoon was found instead as it turns out cheese turns into liquid when heated up. Everyone else was happily munching into their normal pizza slices as Tanaka started shovelling the soup-like cheese and meat mixture into his mouth. Ennoshita just watched in mild embarrassment because he knew _everyone was staring at him_ and he knew that Tanaka was just using this as an excuse to kiss him without the awkward build up and confession. Which, in itself was a confession in a way.

"Congratulations, your not-boyfriend is an idiot." Suga whispered in his ear which made the blush on his cheeks worse because _god dammit his seniors are making fun of him now_.

"Thanks." Ennoshita breathed. "I regret making this bet now."

"You say that now...but you made the bet so there must be a part of you that _wanted_ him to win."

The truth in that statement just made Ennoshita's face burn even more. Tanaka looked determined to eat the entire thing, and it wasn't down to his pride. Hinata and Noya watched with baited breath - and somewhat full mouths of pizza - as the other barely said a thing between mouthfuls.

"This has got to be the stupidest thing ever..." Tsukishima sighed.

"Kinda romantic in a way." Takao remarked.

"Psh, forcing oneself to eat that kind of junk for a kiss is hardly romantic." Midorima scoffed.

"Agreed." Tsukishima nodded.

"Aw c'mon you two, it's about the self-sacrifice! The prince laying down his life for the princess--"

"Did you just called Ennoshita a princess?!" Noya spluttered, breaking into a fit of laughter as Tanaka nearly choked on a piece of teriyaki.

"I guess we got our next club promo image then." Suga shrugged. "Asahi won't have to dress up as Jesus again."

"He did what?!" Hinata exclaimed.

The lunacy continued for a while as Tanaka continued to munch through the dish, stopping when he was halfway done for a quick break, Noya gave his shoulders a massage as Kuroo asked if he was okay.

"What do you think?" Tanaka asked, still determined but with half a 'pizza' still left to eat he was struggling.

"Let me encourage you." Kuroo smirked, placing a hand on his head and clearing his throat. "Our father in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come--"

"Wait are you performing an exorcism on the pizza?" Bokuto cackled.

"No I'm giving him his late rites." Kuroo shrugged.

Tanaka picked up the spoon again and started eating. Sweat was beginning to bead on his forehead as he began to tire, Noya started helping by giving him a pep talk much to everyone else's amusement.

"C'mon Ryu, you got this. You're tough as nails, rock-hard determination, you'll get a kiss from your princess when you finish this pizza--"

Suga laughed as Ennoshita face-palmed, wrapping an arm around the second year's shoulders to try and ease his embarrassment. Hinata joined Noya's pep talk with chanting 'senpai' over and over again, and Yamaguchi started wiping the sweat from Tanaka's forehead. Daichi and Asahi looked mildly concerned for their teammate's welfare as he got down to the final quarter.

"I mean, if this isn't love, then I dunno what is." Aomine shrugged. "I'm sure you agree with me Mura."

"Mine-chin should take notes then." The giant responded.

"Wait what are you--"

Kagami burst into a fit of laughter as Aomine was ignored by the other miracle in favour for another slice of normal pizza. Ennoshita was starting to get a nervous feeling in his stomach as Tanaka showed no sign of stopping, he was dealing with the very real possibility that he'd have to kiss the other in front of everyone because he couldn't say no to a bet. This wasn't how he had pictured their first kiss.

"Come on Ryu, you're so close!" Noya continued, more impressed with how far his friend had gotten. "You can do it!"

"He's definitely gonna be in a food coma later." Suga murmured to Daichi who nodded.

"Let Chikara deal with it, he encouraged it in the first place." Daichi shrugged.

Tanaka's pace wavered slightly as he got close to finishing, the final slither of pizza sat in front of him as he sat there breathing heavily. He glanced up and his eyes immediately found Ennoshita's in the crowd. The other looked slightly flustered but managed an amused smile. With his hand shaking, Tanaka managed to get the entire piece onto the spoon and slowly eat it all. The loud clatter of the spoon hitting the empty dish sent a cheer up from everyone watching.

"Oh my god Ryu how are you alive?" Ennoshita sighed in defeat, trying to beat down the butterflies in his stomach, he knew he was blushing like crazy but there was no way to prevent it really.

"Dunno." Tanaka panted, the toll of eating so much in a short time frame catching up with him. "But I won." He grinned.

"Yes yes, you won." Ennoshita waved dismissively, trying to play it off as cool as he leaned against the table. "Don't rush yourself, I don't want you puking into my mouth."

"Gross." Hinata wrinkled his nose.

"In fact I don't want any of you around so kindly find something else to do." Ennoshita stated, finding some confidence from somewhere. Suga nodded to Kiyoko who then requested that everyone helped her clean up all the dishes and finish cleaning up from the night before. Begrudgingly, everyone heeded the manager's request. Tanaka stood up, nearly losing his balance slightly as his bloated belly bumped against the table. Ennoshita shook his head slightly, gesturing to the hallway before making sure Tanaka wasn't going to lose his balance again.

"You're actually going along with it?" Tanaka asked once they were alone in the hallway, they had a few minutes at most before anyone came out of the dining room but it would be enough.

"You proposed it, so yeah." Ennoshita replied.

There was a moment of silence, Tanaka looked slightly bewildered but that could've been down to the oncoming food coma. "Really...like you're okay with this?"

The other rolled his eyes. "Ryu, would I have agreed to it if I wasn't? Also are you that blind? I've been crushing on you since we met dummy."

Tanaka laughed, having to pause to breathe before replying. "Well yeah I knew _that_. I just pictured you being more flustered about kissing me."

"Don't be so big-headed." Ennoshita stated, stepping closer to the other and gently curling a finger under his chin to draw him a little closer too. "I'm not that much of a princess."

"Oh really? Cause I think you'd look great in a dress--"

Ennoshita cut him off by pressing his lips to Tanaka's, partly to shut him up and partly to stop himself putting it off any longer. It was definitely not what he pictured his first kiss to be like, for a start Tanaka's lips were rough where he had bitten on them, his breath somewhat stank of pizza and he broke it off when a hand suddenly gripped his ass.

"Aw why'd you stop?" Tanaka sounded disappointed when Ennoshita broke away and gave him a somewhat unimpressed look.

"Because you grabbed my ass!"

"But you have a nice ass!"

A voice from the other side of the door startled both of them; "When you've both stopped making out, we'd like to leave the dining room." Bokuto called.

"Hold on, this princess has to drag the prince to his bed so he doesn't faint in the hallway." Ennoshita called back, fisting Tanaka's shirt and dragging him down the hallway, instead of going into the shared room though, he found one of the cleaning closets and shut them both in.

" _Now_ you can grab my ass." He hissed, panting slightly from the sudden burst of adrenaline. "Fuck, just go ahead and give me a matching mark to Kageyama whilst you're at it."

Tanaka was a little more bewildered than before but who was he to pass up this opportunity? They could face the wrath of their seniors _much_ later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 3) Yes this entire pizza party fiasco is based off a real life party I went to (without all the gay), including the near exorcism of a pizza pie.


	11. Bro-zone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Muro-chin, what did you put in everyone's drinks?" Murasakibara hummed.
> 
> "...just a little something called absinthe." Himuro shrugged, getting an incredulous look from both Kagami and Suga.
> 
> "You gave them _that_ ?!" Kagami spluttered. "No wonder everyone's fucked."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1) This so called plot of mine is falling apart a little.  
> 2) Once again we have a bit of seriousness and then general lunacy so I hope you enjoy???

Chapter Eleven

Bro-zone

 

"So what's your plan to get Akashi and Furi together?" Riko asked quietly. The boys had finally gotten the shaving foam stains off the walls and were starting to cause mischief in other ways now, Kuroo and Bokuto had left to acquire some more alcohol for 'one final night of drinking' - much to some people's dismay.

"Well, do you remember a game in middle school called 'seven minutes in heaven'?" Momoi replied.

"Well, no." Riko lied, she knew. Everyone knew that cringe-worthy game and she just wanted to hear Momoi explain why getting a bunch of high school boys to play it was a great idea.

"You basically nominate two people to go into a closet together for seven minutes and see what happens." Momoi smiled, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "Sometimes it's done when playing spin the bottle so it's entirely random."

Yachi had been listening to the conversation with interest, more at how Momoi seemed so at ease discussing such a bizarre game. "So what do they do in the closet?" She asked timidly.

"Oh whatever they want Yacchan." Momoi raised an eyebrow. "The key thing is they only have seven minutes before someone will open the door and reveal them to the rest of the group."

"Sounds like an excuse for voyeurism."

"In a sense, yeah. But if everyone's drunk enough then it won't seem as weird." Momoi assured her, giggling a little as Riko shook her head.

"Good luck convincing them it's a good idea." Riko sighed, moving to go and find out what had Kise and Takao in hysterics.

It appeared to anyone else that Takao and Midorima were simply teammates, at most friends through a single common interest, but their closer friends knew better. Even if Midorima appeared cold to most there were times when he'd crack a smile at something a certain point guard would say, sometimes he'd go out of his way to make a slightly chiding comment which only made the miracles further suspect there was something going on.

Such had been the case when Takao had made the statement about Tanaka eating the abomination of a pizza for love. Kise had kept his laughter to himself when Midorima argued with the other but now out of earshot of the miracle, he relayed his thoughts to Takao that _maybe_ the ace was harbouring feelings for him.

Hence the hysterical laughter.

"Shin-chan having feelings for me?" Takao repeated, trying to stop another laugh escaping him. "You're funny Kise."

"Eh? Aren't you gonna deny you like him or something?"

Takao shrugged. "It is what it is. He's so tsundere that he won't say anything outright and I'm not gonna push him to. I'd much rather we stayed friends than I ruin it by trying to seduce him."

Kise pouted slightly, not sure how to wrap his head around the words, Takao didn't outright admit he had feelings for his teammate but he didn't deny anything either. The blond couldn't help but think that he had been spending so much time with Midorima that he was starting to talk like him too.

"So, you don't want to seduce him...but you wouldn't say no?" Kise tried to clarify, Takao just raised an eyebrow and chuckled slightly.

"Don't think too much into it Kise, I'm sure if me or him got drunk enough then something would happen but as it stands, I think Shin-chan is going to keep his thoughts and feelings well under control." Takao shrugged again, starting to walk away and no doubt harass Kageyama about this obvious lovebite of his.

The setter had been getting comments all day from everyone, he hadn't been lectured half to death yet by his senpais so he counted himself lucky. He hadn't spoken directly to Hinata yet either, he remembered well enough how he had ended up being pressed against the wall with the shorter male gazing at him with determination in his eyes, the haze of the alcohol only made it easier for him to give into it and pull him into a sloppy kiss that turned rough. What he couldn't understand was how no-one else saw it, or at least hadn't commented on it.

He saw Takao approaching and immediately sighed, he was not in the mood to be harassed by the other. He debated just grabbing Hinata by the hand and dragging him away to explain that leaving marks on his neck wasn't acceptable.

"It'll fade within a few days." Takao declared, sitting next to him. "You worry too much."

"You try being on a team with Tsukishima."

"I already am, and what I learned from that is you should take his comments with a pinch of salt. Also remember that he is not some deity that can do no wrong, he's got his own issues and he'll fuck up too. If you want to befriend him--"

"I don't, I just want him to stop being an asshole." Kageyama cut in.

"Well some guys just give off that vibe. He probably wasn't always like that, sometimes shit happens and people change."

Kageyama hummed, he vaguely knew something happened between Tsukishima and his brother and that was what killed his love of volleyball. He just didn't quite grasp why he and Hinata always the target of the name-calling. Takao didn't say anything else, just condescendingly patting his head and moving on to annoy someone else. A loud but familiar voice in his ear shook him from his thought process.

"What's wrong? You're doing that scary face again." Hinata's lips were practically on Kageyama's cheek and he was not in the mood for this.

"Well everyone's staring at my neck because of you." He grumbled.

Hinata had the good grace to look embarrassed, he rubbed the back of his head like Oikawa would do and that just annoyed Kageyama even more. He stood up, seized Hinata's hand and dragged him out into the hallway, ignoring the stares from their teammates and guests alike. Hinata protested at the rough handling but went willingly.

They ended up in a hallway away from everyone else, it was at the point that Hinata expected Kageyama to start yelling at him but  the other didn't seem to be in a _bad_ mood, just mildly irritated.

"What's wrong Tobio?" Hinata asked quietly once they had stopped walking. The rain gave them something to listen to in the otherwise silent hallway, yet the darkness put a slight dampener on the mood.

"...about last night." Kageyama replied, noting the sudden panic in Hinata's eyes and feeling worse. "Wait, no it's not like that--"

"I'm sorry!" Hinata cut in, bowing in apology. "I..."

"Shut up dumbass..." Kageyama breathed, closing the gap between them and pulling Hinata into a hug. "You don't need to be sorry."

"Then why'd you put on that scary face and drag me out here?" The other protested, burying his face in the crook of Kageyama's neck as he gripped onto the other's shirt.

"Because maybe I don't want everyone watching me?" He nearly snapped, feeling as if it was obvious that he didn't want to be seen being all mushy with someone he once considered his rival. This new side of him felt foreign, as if it had always been there but never shown itself.

Hinata pulled back and looked up at Kageyama, the setter's cheeks were a little flushed but he didn't avoid the other's gaze. He smiled slightly as he realised what Kageyama was saying.

"You're embarrassed aren't you?" He teased.

"What? No!"

"Well what's wrong then? Everyone knows by now anyway."

"That's the point! Everyone knows because you bit me." Kageyama wanted to be mad, but the smile on Hinata's face was incredibly hard to scowl at.

"...bite me then." Hinata stated, with his usual oblivious expression. Kageyama wanted to both yell at and kiss him.

"Don't be stupid Shoyo..." He breathed, cupping a hand under Hinata's chin and tilting his face up, eyes widened as the softer smile returned to the smaller boy's features. "No what I was _going_ to say before you interrupted in the first place...was that..." He trailed off, feeling the strange nervousness that he felt when he first came to terms with liking the other. "...we could make it more official. Like, it's not just a drunk thing or--"

"You want to tell everyone? What about what Tsukishima would say?" Hinata had a billion and one questions that Kageyama really didn't want to go through so he just waved it off.

"Yes, yes I know I said that but--like whatever. I'm not letting him get to me over this." Kageyama snorted. "Let him be bitter."

"...you know he's crushing on Yamaguchi right?"

The setter took a second to process this information before deciding it wasn't important. "...anyway. I...I'm sorry for making you worry just now."

Hinata couldn't get over how this was Kageyama apologising to him, he smiled and rose up on tiptoes to press his lips to the other's. Arms wrapping around him and pulling him closer made him gasp slightly. His fingers dug into Kageyama's shoulders as the setter tried to pull away, they bumped noses, each letting out a small breathless laugh.

"So you wanna tell Suga-senpai?" Hinata was beaming as Kageyama linked their fingers together and chuckled.

"Why don't you do it? You seem more into it, just don't go over the top about it." Kageyama huffed. Hinata looked like Christmas had come early as he squeezed Kageyama's hands and started to drag him back to their team. the setter let out a sigh of relief, at least if any more stupid drunk shenanigans occurred that night, he wouldn't be as mortified as he was that morning.

 

* * *

 

 

It was still raining when Kuroo and Bokuto went to meet Nekomata near the local liquor store, this was how they got the alcohol in the first place but after last night they were running low and they wanted to have one final night of craziness. With the coach still in the store with Ukai, the two third years had some time to talk.

And Bokuto definitely had something to say.

"Do you remember pinning Akaashi to the floor last night?" He asked, cutting almost straight to the point.

"Hm? Vaguely." Kuroo replied, running a hand through his hair. "Yeah he didn't put up much of a fight."

The other captain chuckled. "Yeah well there's a reason for that."

"Ohoho?"

"Yeah, I don't really understand it myself but uh, he said this morning that he wants to date both of us." Bokuto believed in being blunt and honest with his best friend, there was no point sugar-coating it or trying to over-complicate things.

Kuroo was quiet for a few moments, kicking a loose pebble on the ground as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Huh. And what do you want Bo?"

"Eh? Why does it matter?"

Kuroo chuckled, seeming to shake off any confusion around the subject. "Well, a relationship involves two people right? And I'm assuming you wouldn't be telling me if you weren't okay with him dating me _and_ you?"

The Nekoma captain had a point. Bokuto played it off with a slight shake of the head. "I mean I don't really get it but I said I'd ask you and see what you say."

"You're avoiding my question Kou~" Kuroo pined, closing the gap between them a little. "I'll put it more bluntly; do _you_ have a problem with him dating me, or do you _also_ want to date me?"

The captain didn't wait too long to respond. "Well, I'll be jealous as fuck watching you and him but I have no 'problem' because it's what Keiji wants." He shrugged, folding his arms across his chest, the redness in his cheeks was noticeable in contrast to his white and grey hair. Kuroo smiled, catching the drift and seeming to drop the subject, only to bring it back a few moments later.

"You didn't answer my second question."

"Eh?"

Kuroo rolled his eyes, he started to understand why Akaashi was always so blunt when talking to Bokuto. "Koutarou. Do you want to date me?"

The slight redness had blossomed into a very deep shade of red, almost that of the other captain's uniform. That in itself answered Kuroo's question.

"I--well..."

"Hm? Kuroo continued, keeping his cool despite the very real panic coursing through him. Going from being single to having _two_ boyfriends in one day would be an achievement and a half, never mind that it would be Akaashi and Bokuto of all people; the pretty setter and the fired up ace of Fukurodani.

"...I guess? You're my best friend Tetsuro...I don't want it to be weird." Bokuto threw his arms in the air before settling them on top his head in thought. "Like I _love_ Keiji, you're just a bro to me."

"are you bro-zoning me?!" Kuroo faked his shock, clutching his heart. "That hurts Bo."

"...well you're an attractive bro if that helps?"

"That just makes it worse!" Kuroo cried, battling the laughter as Bokuto looked genuinely unsure if he was joking or not. "I mean, I'm just some kind of side fuck?"

The panic in the wide golden eyes said it all. "Hey I said nothing about wanting to--" he stopped when Kuroo burst into a fit of laughter.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist." Kuroo apologised once he recomposed himself. He placed a hand on Bokuto's shoulder and squeezed slightly. "I mean, I wanna talk to Akaashi about all this yeah? It's a weird thing to explain, and I expect Kenma already knows all the details but I wanna see what he thinks."

Bokuto nodded, feeling a sense of relief washing over him as Kuroo pulled him into a hug, with the new context to their friendship--no _relationship_ \- he held on a little tighter. If he was being honest with himself, Kuroo was just a little bit more than 'just a bro' but he wanted to do this for Akaashi rather than himself. It would just be an added bonus if him and Kuroo became closer.

"When you two have stopped cuddling like newlyweds." A gruff but amused voice remarked, causing Kuroo to break away and smirk at his coach. The old man gave them a bag that clattered a little, one peek inside made Kuroo bow in gratitude and grab Bokuto's hand to head back to the school. When he asked Kuroo what was in the bag, the captain only replied with;

"A good night."

At the time Bokuto wasn't sure what he meant. His mind was just on how well Kuroo's hand fit in his, how soft it was and how normal it felt to be holding it.  He could get used to this.

 

* * *

 

 

"Oh so you're actually joining us tonight hm?" Aomine remarked when Momoi declared her and the girls were going to be drinking.

"Oh hush Dai-chan." Momoi scolded. "Someone's got to make sure you don't mess up the room _again_."

"For the last time, Riko was the one who suggested we got the shaving foam--" Kagami cut in, getting a death glare from his coach.

As far as everyone else was concerned, this was just a case of sitting around and drinking, there were no weird drinking games to be played. For the first hour it was just an average night of drinking between friends. There were jokes about the marks on Ennoshita's neck and how Tanaka was now in a very lethargic state thanks to the pizza - or at least that was the story Ennoshita was sticking to and no-one dared to challenge him, Kageyama seemed less wound up than earlier and was actually letting Hinata kiss his cheek as the small male got tipsier, and the rest of the group just sat back in the friendly atmosphere and soaked up the laughter and the banter.

That was until Momoi declared that she had a great idea.

"You want us to do what?" Kagami asked.

"We spin the bottle twice and get the two people it lands on to go into a closet for seven minutes."

"Wait didn't we play this once--" Kise started, getting cut off by Kasamatsu covering his mouth.

"No, that was just you hiding in the club storeroom and scaring the crap out of me one day before we started dating." He corrected, seemingly given up trying to hold onto his pride now that they were drinking.

"It sounds stupid." Midorima sighed.

"What do you guys think?" Momoi asked the third years. "You're game right?"

The third years all exchanged glances, Kuroo and Bokuto shrugged, leaving it up to the Karasuno trio to shut down the idea or not. Asahi shook his head, Daichi and Suga seemed to come to an unspoken agreement and nodded.

"After all, there's nothing stating what you have to do right? You could simply stand there in the darkness and talk." Suga explained, hoping to put some of the more timid first years at ease.

"Exactly, it only turns sexual if y'all can't control yourselves." Momoi summarised, getting a few protests from her old teammates. "Anyway, we need an empty bottle so someone finish that alcohol."

 

* * *

 

 

There was music playing from someone's phone, probably to drown out any noises in the closet that had been chosen for this 'game', it was some generic pop music that some of them knew the words to but others didn't. In the haze of drunkenness, it was almost surreal. Akaashi had found himself sat in Kuroo's lap, the captain's arms wrapped around his waist and resting his chin on top of his head, Bokuto hadn't objected whatsoever.

The bottle span, rattling on the floor as it slowed and was pointing at Lev. Akaashi remembered how Momoi had declared that everyone was to change seats so that it would be more 'random' who the bottle 'chose'. He had paid little attention as strange match ups kept happening, so far no-one had been caught making out, although that didn't mean it _wasn't_ happening.

"Lev and...Yaku."

He had figured out already that the way Momoi twisted her wrist could determine where the bottle would stop. Of course it wasn't precise but she could dictate the general area, he had his suspicions that she had some ulterior motives but hadn't had the chance to act properly on them. Kuroo sniggered as Yaku looked like he was about to die, Lev was very tipsy and the third year wasn't doing much better. A lot of the Nekoma team had sussed that the two of them had a fondness for each other, it wasn't helped by Noya calling for Yaku to 'go easy on him'.

During the seven minutes, more drinks were poured and a game of 'drink or dare' was taking place, it was to try and keep everyone from listening for whatever weird noises could be coming from the closet - Akaashi thanked the heavens that he hadn't been picked yet - which was decidedly much more entertaining.

"Okay, Tsukishima! Drink or dare." Riko had taken over spinning the bottle for the sub-game, it further indicated to Akaashi that there was some kind of matchmaking going on but he wasn't going to pop the bubble just yet.

"Dare." The other replied without much hesitation.

The girls whispered to each other for a few moments, drawing Kiyoko into the huddle for a third opinion before deciding on something. Riko cleared her throat and raised an eyebrow.

"We dare you to have an arm wrestle with Akashi."

"Tsk, easy."

The Rakuzan captain didn't say anything as he took the hand offered by the other first year, Aomine and Kise exchanged a glance as Kagami counted down from three. Both arms tensed, Akashi's expression didn't change and Tsukishima tried not to let on how much he was struggling against the captain. It didn't take long for Akashi to slam Tsukishima's hand against the floor with a slight smirk. Now with a wounded hand, Tsukishima scowled at the other first year until he felt a gentle touch.

"What are you--"

Yamaguchi gently rubbed his aching knuckles, not responding when Tsukishima asked him why he was doing this. The game of drink or dare continued, most people taking shots instead of getting dares. At some point someone reminded Momoi of the two boys in the closet and she skipped to the door and knocked twice. After a fit of giggles from her and someone protesting, Yaku re-entered the room, avoiding everyone's gaze as he sat down.

"...Morisuke it looks like something attacked you." Noya remarked.

"Like a lion." Kuroo added.

"I'm going to kill both of you." Yaku replied, not even bothering trying to deny that the reason he had clear bite marks on his neck and his lips were red were the result of his underclassman pouncing on him. Lev himself was in a _very_ good mood, sitting next to Yaku and practically draping himself over the third year. "And you're going to die soon too if you don't quit it..." Yaku grumbled half-heartedly.

"Anyway, next victim--" Momoi declared, seizing the bottle and spinning it. Akaashi noted how fast it was going and which direction it had been facing before. If his hunch was correct then it would land on...

"Sakurai!" Momoi squealed, the first year was edging on the side of drunk, his 'other' self had come out apparently so Akaashi was intrigued as to where this would lead.

The bottle spun again, it was slower than last time, more calculated, he had to admit that Momoi had something about her if she could rig a game supposedly based on chance.

"Oh Dai-chan, how boring." Momoi sighed. "Go on then."

Aomine ignored the side glance from Kagami as he rose to his feet and offered to help a somewhat drunk Sakurai to stand up. He wasn't fooled in the slightest, Momoi had planned this, her reaction to his name coming second had said it all. It didn't help that Sakurai was in clutch time thanks to Himuro trying to steal his drink earlier.

He found the smaller boy's more gutsy attitude hot, he was so weak to it he was almost ashamed.

When he shut them into the closet, he wasn't sure what to expect. It was dark and he had to reach out to even find the other. Sakurai's hand gently pressed on his chest, pushing him against the closed door. He felt hot breath across his lips - figuring Sakurai was on his tiptoes to even reach - and the pressure on his chest increase.

"Ryou, are you drunk?" He had to ask, he couldn't just go along with this without knowing.

"Maybe." Sakurai replied, his voice even but low. Downright sexy in Aomine's mind.

With the clock ticking, Aomine gently pushed him back and reversed their positions, Sakurai's back hit the door with a small thud and the ace crowded his personal space.

"Daiki..." Sakurai mused, the smell of vodka on his breath as Aomine hovered there, a dainty hand cupped his face and drew him closer still. "I dare you to kiss me."

Now he was speaking Aomine's language, playing to his competitive ego and pulling the strings to get what he wanted. To think that this was the same boy who apologised for even existing was a mystery to Aomine, a mystery he was prepared to try solving. He tilted his head to the side slightly, the darkness unrelenting as he cautiously leaned closer, lips brushing lightly at first until he was sure of himself.

Sakurai's fingers gripped his shirt, tugging him harshly. A small moan escaped his lips as he returned the kiss, daring to part his lips and lick at Aomine's lips. A combination of his clutch persona and the liquid confidence was letting him let loose and 'live a little' as Aomine would say. The hand on the small of his back bringing him closer to the ace made him all too aware of the effect he was having on the other.

He broke away from the now messy making out, panting as Aomine kissed his jawline and moved to his neck. The room felt too small, too hot, too dangerous. He didn't know how much time they had before someone opened the door behind him, the fact that he - a small nobody of the team - could be caught like this with one of the generation of miracles sent a rush of adrenaline though him. The thrill of possibly getting caught fed his other persona where it would paralyze his normal self. He ran a hand through Aomine's hair and tugged him back to kissing him. He wasn't sure if either of them would remember this in the morning, part of him hoped he would.

A knock at the door made him freeze, Aomine begrudgingly pulled away and chuckled slightly, taking his hand and pulling him off the door. Light streamed into the small space from where Momoi stood, she raised an eyebrow and giggled.

"I figured this would work." She remarked quietly.

Aomine sighed, looking at Sakurai's slightly spooked expression, he could see the red marks where he had kissed the other's neck a little too roughly and felt a tiny bit guilty. Apparently during their session in the closet Kagami had been dared to wear lipstick like war paint - he now had two bright pink stripes on each of his cheeks - and Noya was currently being told to drink a shot of soy sauce for a dare.

At this point, everyone was finding the marks on people's necks just another normal thing.

There was a brief intermission so someone could go and raid the kitchen for snacks, Himuro poured out some mixed drinks so everyone could stop dying by shots. Takao and Kise were definitely in way over their heads, Kasamatsu stopped trying to get Kise to calm down and Midorima was reluctantly let the point guard sit in his lap so he'd at least stay still.

"Shin-chan~" Takao slurred, leaning back and tilting his head to look at the other. "Are you having fun?"

Kise giggled as Midorima sighed, trying to pluck the drunk from Takao's hand and failing. The smaller boy wriggled slightly and Midorima went very still, Kasamatsu immediately knew why and couldn't help but laugh. From the more vocal drunks to the subdued ones; Akashi hadn't said much or really gone as far as to drink as much as the others. He simply sat with Furihata and the two of them spoke quietly in between rounds of drinking and watching their friends embarrassed themselves.

Which was something Momoi was going to exploit once the game of 'drink or dare' resumed. With the purpose of the closet having passed, she put her focus on trying to get the heir to confess once and for all.

"Akashi-kun~" She sang as the bottle landed on him - totally not rigged of course.

"Yes Momoi-san?" He greeted, tearing his gaze from Furihata.

"Drink or dare." She stated.

He seemed to think for a few moments. "Dare."

"Show us how you would flirt with someone." She batted her eyelashes to feign innocence.

The heir's cheeks went a little rosy but he nodded, taking a drink anyway before taking Furihata's hand, those who weren't too drunk to pay attention were watching as Furihata looked at him with wide eyes. He smiled as he ran his thumb over the other's knuckles, waiting a second before speaking.

"Your lips look lonely, would they like to meet mine?" He murmured softly.

A combination of Momoi squealing, Kise complaining that Akashi wasn't allowed to 'be so cute' and Kagami nearly choking on his drink happened, Furihata's face went the same colour as Akashi's hair before he hastily nodded and closed the gap between them. The captain was startled to say the least but had no issues with the outcome, returning the kiss yet keeping it purely innocent.

"Hey get a room!" Kuroo shouted, startling the setter in his lap.

"Kuro can you not?" Akaashi mumbled, reaching for another drink.

"Moving on." Momoi declared, spinning the bottle. "Oh Kiyoko!"

The manager looked spooked but nodded, she had been drinking enough to feel a buzz but was still sober enough not to make any stupid decisions.. "Dare."

"Oh Kiyoko-senpai!" Noya cheered, Asahi exchanged a glance with Suga who was trying to stop Daichi from getting so hands on in front of the freshmen.

"Hm..a dare for Kiyoko..." Momoi hummed.

"Kiss someone!" Bokuto suggested, having now drunk enough to not really think before speaking.

"Psh no let's come up with something original--" Momoi scoffed before Kiyoko interrupted.

"No it's okay." She replied with a smile. Momoi was very confused, as were half of the others, but not as confused as Yachi when the manager cupped her face gently and softly pressed her lips to the other's. Noya and Tanaka both stared in a mixture of shock and confusion before someone said what everyone else was thinking.

"...are you telling me everyone here is gay?" Himuro laughed.

"Unless Midorima is a closet straight--" Takao began before a hand clamped over his mouth.

Kise completely lost it when the shooter pressed his lips to Takao's cheek.

"Muro-chin, what did you put in everyone's drinks?" Murasakibara hummed as Yachi's face flushed red and Kiyoko giggled. He hadn't been drinking really except for the odd shot now and then, he found it far too amusing watching everyone else get wasted.

"...just a little something called absinthe." Himuro shrugged, getting an incredulous look from both Kagami and Suga.

"You gave them _that_?!" Kagami spluttered. "No wonder everyone's fucked."

"...how...did you bring that with you?" Suga asked.

"Yeah, got it imported from the states for the summer in general and it was just sat in my bag this entire time."

"...do Kuroo and Bokuto know?" The co-captain pressed.

"Eh? No, well Bokuto saw me get it out but he didn't object."

"Oh god they're all gonna be dead tomorrow..." Kagami groaned.

"So you spiked everyone's drinks...why?" Suga was struggling to figure out the reasoning behind it.

"Y'all needed to liven up a bit." Himuro stated.

With the damage already done, Suga just resigned himself to making sure no-one died. It was going to be a long night and he knew it.

 


	12. Waking up in Vegas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Morning senpai~" Lev's shit-eating grin wasn't exactly the first thing Yaku wanted to see in his current state.

Chapter Twelve

Waking up in Vegas

  
He didn't recognise the room he was in,  he didn't remember how he got here either. Rolling over, he collided with someone, his head hurt like hell as he tried to get the cogs of his brain to function.

"Morning senpai~" Lev's shit-eating grin wasn't exactly the first thing Yaku wanted to see in his current state.

"Lev..." Yaku replied, sitting up and instantly regretting it when his headache worsened. He clocked that they weren't the only ones in this other room; Furihata and Akashi were present, as were Kise and Kasamatsu. "Where are we?"

"Hm? I don't know." Lev seemed relatively 'with it' for someone who was very out of it the previous night, there was a glint in his eye as he regarded Yaku and the third year didn't need to be told what he was staring it.

"...well clearly we're somewhere in school." Yaku huffed, it looked like a club room but that would mean they got access to the gym building at the same time and Yaku really didn't want to know how _that_ happened. "Come on, I need water."

The first year stood up and offered a hand to his senpai, Yaku took it without much thought and kept hold of it as they left the others to wake up to their hangovers. He was correct in his assumption that they were in a club room - it wasn't the volleyball club's room though so he predicted a slightly awkward conversation with someone at some point - and was relieved to not find any of the other rooms open.

"Okay Lev, do you remember what happened?" He sighed as they made their way back to the main building. "Cause I sure as hell don't." He lied, he remembered the events of the closet, the drinking afterwards and then the rest was a blur. A blur that seemed to be made up of Lev mainly.

The first year shrugged. "I remember Kuroo-senpai had Akaashi in his lap for a while, and there was a lot of yelling about someone being too cute, and then someone suggested we--" He was cut off by them coming across Kenma, one of only two people to remain sober the entire time. "Kenma!"

"Lev. Yaku-senpai." Kenma replied, he was holding a cup of hot liquid but wasn't giving anything away or making a remark about Yaku's neck. "Kuro-san is in a room with Bokuto-san and Akaashi-san. I suggest you don't go looking for them yet."

"Oh god please tell me they didn't do--"

"No they did not. However I know Akaashi-san would be mortified if someone saw them sleeping together...in such a fashion." Kenma replied. "Excuse me, but I'm trying to find Tsukishima."

Yaku nodded, relaying who they had woken up in a room with to the other before tugging Lev towards the kitchen to get some precious water. Lev started babbling about how he wanted to find out what Kenma was talking about but Yaku flatly told him to quit it, that the personal affairs of their captain was not of his concern.

They found Asahi nursing a slight headache - the ace wasn't really up for talking but happily let Lev ramble on about what he remembered of the night - and Yaku was debating going up and seeing what carnage awaited him in the shared rooms.

"So have you seen Suga or Daichi?" Yaku asked once he had drunk some much needed water. "Or the girls who started all this stupidity?"

Asahi chuckled slightly. "I know Suga is probably hungover, the first years are completely gone still. Dunno where the girls are."

"Suga is hungover? He hardly drank though."

"Oh, that's what you think." Asahi raised an eyebrow. "Once it was obvious there was no chance of stopping everyone else getting drunk, he threw in the towel and well...let's just say if you didn't know that he and Daichi were dating, you will when you see them."

Yaku definitely dreaded going to find everyone now. Yet as Kuroo was otherwise occupied, he seemed to be in charge now. He sighed heavily and drank another glass of water for good measure before preparing himself to walk into hell itself. For there is nothing worse than walking in on the aftermath of a teenage party. He knew that from the few times Kuroo had thrown 'study' sessions in the past.

He told Lev to stay in the kitchen and give people water as they no doubt came in search of it, forbidding the first year from following him. The last thing he needed was his unofficial - or maybe it was official now but that was the least of his worries - boyfriend tagging along.

 

* * *

 

 

Hinata wrinkled his nose as he woke up. There was someone led on his chest and he felt like he was gonna be sick. He shoved whoever it was off of him and sat up, Kageyama awoke with a start as Hinata stood up and made his way out of the room. The setter rubbed his eyes and took in the scene around him; it was hard for him to work out who was who as his vision was more than compromised thanks to his still spinning head, he was sure he was still slightly drunk. He was mostly sure that Noya was sleeping like a starfish, Ennoshita was being spooned by Tanaka, Sakurai was asleep on top of Aomine and Takao was curled up in Midorima's hold.

That was as far as he'd gotten when Hinata staggered back into the room wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. Kageyama beckoned him over and opened his arms for the smaller boy to lay in, straddling his lap as he did so.

"Headache?" He whispered to Hinata as the other buried his face in the crook of his neck.

"Nu-uh, stomach-ache." Hinata whimpered.

Kageyama grunted, pressing a kiss to his cheek and ruffling the other's hair as he held him. Footsteps outside preceded Asahi's arrival with a tray of glasses. He gave them both a sympathetic smile as he entered the room and offered them both a drink, he then poked Noya's forehead until the libero woke up with a groan, accepting both water and cuddles from his lover.

"Asahi-san..." Hinata whimpered. "What did we even drink last night?"

The third year shook his head. "One of the basketball players had some foreign stuff and just threw it in everyone's drinks without saying anything. At least that's the last thing Suga told me before..." he trailed off, not wanting to really divulge to the freshmen how the co-captain's self-control snapped.

"Before?" Kageyama repeated. "Where is he"?

"Uh, never mind." Asahi was bad at lying so he just refused to say anything. His saving grace came in form of Yaku coming to inspect the room after dealing with whatever chaos had erupted in Nekoma's room.

"Good no-one vomited in here." He sighed. "Still haven't found the girls though."

"They probably went back to their room...I hope." Asahi replied, Noya had fallen asleep again so he wasn't going to be any help whatsoever. "You haven't seen Tsukishima anywhere have you?"

Yaku vaguely remembered Kenma was looking for him. "No, no I haven't. Anyway, I'm gonna start making breakfast, send everyone down once they're able to stand without swaying."

The libero glanced into the opposite room once more before returning to his lover in the kitchen. The Nekoma room was in a state of disarray for having so few people in it, Himuro was the only one awake when Yaku came in the first time, he was seemingly unaffected by the spiked drinks - that was probably down to the fact he hadn't drank any of them. Murasakibara was slumbering still and Kagami was just waking up to find that he had not only swapped rooms with Aomine but that he had dragged Kuroko with him.

"Does he usually sleep shirtless?" Himuro asked, gesturing to the smaller boy in Kagami's bed. "And holy shit did you give him all those hickeys last night?"

Kagami blushed and scowled at the other. "No..."

"You sly dog." Himuro remarked.

"You're one to talk, you gave everyone absinthe without saying so." Kagami replied, running a hand through Kuroko's hair as the other slept. They were very aware of the lack volleyball captains in the room, no-one really knew where Kuroo and Bokuto were but they were fairly sure that Akaashi was with them. Himuro was vaguely aware of where Suga and Daichi ended up but he wasn't going to let that slip just yet, having witnessed the co-captain's personality change so quickly last night was enough to ensure that.

"You wanna go and see what state the girls are in?" Himuro asked.

"I'd rather not die today." Kagami snorted, laying back down next to Kuroko and drawing him into his hold.

"Fair point, I'm gonna go and help Yaku with food."

"You do that." Kagami sighed, set on getting more sleep whilst the day was young.

 

* * *

 

 

The strong stench of chlorine woke Daichi up, the hard floor he was laying on was the second thing to make him aware they were not in the room they should’ve been in. He glanced beside him and found Suga sound asleep and lacking in a lot of clothing, the setter's boxers clung to his pale hips as he hardly registered the discomfort or the slight chill in the air. Daichi was almost ashamed of how many marks littered the co-captain's shoulders and body in general, but also felt a sense of pride at how someone so beautiful had let him get away with doing that.

The captain was left scrambling inside his memories for a trace of _what the hell happened_?

They were at the indoor pool, he wasn't even aware Nekoma had one but the familiar red and black banners everywhere at least gave him comfort that they were still in the school. He thanked whatever deity existed that they hadn't gone to the outdoor pool, that would've been colder and no doubt more mortifying if someone had spotted them.

It was then that he noticed his own lack of clothing, stripped down to his underwear as well and his own chest littered with marks, but these were more like claws, he was vaguely worried what his back looked like. He figured that during their drunk state either him or Suga had dragged the other to the pool for a midnight rendezvous. How neither of them ended up drowning was beyond him but once again he thanked the deities.

"Oi, Koushi..." He called quietly, tracing the other's pale cheek with his thumb. Eyelids fluttered before opening, the redness around his eyes could've been chlorine or the effect of the drink. It took less than thirty seconds for Suga to realise what had happened.

"Oh my god...Daichi..." His cheeks reddened impressively and hide behind his hands as he rolled away. "I'm sorry! I didn't--"

Daichi was a little stunned but more afraid that the other would roll into the pool if he didn't do something. He pulled Suga back into his hold and held him tightly, peppering his bare shoulder with kisses.

"Hey, it's okay...Koushi don't hide your face."

"Oh god what if the freshmen saw, oh man getting drunk and behaving like that in front of them--" He babbled, letting Daichi roll him over so he could face the other. A hand cupping his face stopped his babbling, he was shivering in the cold but also in partial fear of what their team thought of him now.

"Don't worry about that for now, most of them were probably too drunk to register anything." Daichi spoke quietly, trying to keep his own paranoia at bay by focusing on Suga's eyes. He slowly leaned in and pressed his lips to the other's, Suga's laboured breathing evened out as he returned the kiss, both of their breaths stank of chlorine and alcohol but that didn't deter them. When Daichi eventually pulled away, Suga seemed more calm and collected. "Better?"

"Mm..." Suga hummed, burying his face in Daichi's chest, feeling the steady heartbeat of the captain. "...since we're here...you wanna go for a swim?"

Daichi's chest rumbled with the laugh that came out of him. "In our boxers?"

Suga's cheeks reddened again. "...not necessarily." The captain ran a hand through his hair, making Suga hum in content and pull back to look him in the eye. "I mean, no-one knows we're here..."

"I suppose a short swim wouldn't hurt..." Daichi replied, his voice low as he pressed a kiss to Suga's cheek. "Might sober us both up."

Whilst they had both agreed to it, neither of them seemed in a hurry to strip. When they changed in the club room they had snuck glances at each other but those were in a completely different context to now. Daichi was the first to move, more or less at ease as he let his boxers pool around his ankles. Suga tried to seem discrete about watching him but when he was caught he couldn't help the blush spreading across his face. Daichi chuckled slightly before stepping off the edge of the pool and falling into the water. He shivered slightly but beckoned for the setter to follow suit.

"...is it cold?" Suga asked, trying to distract himself from the nerves. He had no idea why his own idea was making him self-conscious but it was.

"A little, but it's warmer than you'd think." Daichi replied.

He nodded, following suit and soon enough he found himself being caged against the pool wall and lips on his neck. He gasped before chuckling slightly, running a hand through Daichi's hair. "I don't think this counts as swimming Daichi..." He hummed.

"I know...but whilst the kids are away..." Daichi linked their fingers together. "Just relax Koushi, you work yourself too much for the team."

"Oh yeah? Well in that case--" He pushed himself away from the wall and wrapped his legs around Daichi, giggling at the slight look of surprise on the other's face. Hands on his back kept him pressed close to the other as he slowly kissed the captain, parting his lips and letting the other's tongue in.

Time passed as they traded kisses and light touches, the light streaming in through the windows bouncing off the water and creating a light shows on the walls. They kept their touches innocent despite the temptation, neither was in a rush to speed things up.

"...we should probably find the others then..." Suga hummed, sensing that sooner or later someone would send out a search party.

"Hmm...I suppose." Daichi sighed, stealing one last kiss from the other. "And some clothes."

Suga blushed. "Oh god yeah..."

They both had to laugh at the sheer scandalous nature of everything, the captain and co-captain getting drunk at a rival school, only to go skinny dipping in the pool the morning after. It would be one of those legends that would no doubt get passed around the volleyball club at every training camp from then onwards, not exactly the thing they'd wanna be remembered for, but until they won a tournament again it would have to do.

 

* * *

 

 

Back in the main building, Akaashi became aware of how hot he felt. He was pressed between two bodies and was feeling slightly claustrophobic as he sat up. Bokuto's hand was on his thigh again, but the captain was definitely asleep, drool leaking out of the corner of his mouth. The setter rolled his eyes slightly but smiled to himself.

"Mornin' Akaashi..." Kuroo's gruff voice greeted as the other captain stirred.

"Morning Kuroo." He replied, trying to gauge how informal to be with this new development in their relationship. They'd had the chance to talk a little bit before all the chaos of that night was unleashed, the sleeping in the same futon and being able to cuddle one another was as far as they'd gotten to agree on. He was right in thinking that the two captains were alike when it came to physical affection, it was interesting having them play off each other and him be in the centre of all of it.

Bokuto stirred slightly, wrapping an arm around Akaashi's waist and tugging him closer to his chest. Kuroo chuckled slightly, reaching out and gently cupping the Akaashi's cheek as they regarded each other in silence.

"Your lips look swollen." He remarked.

"Gee I wonder why." Akaashi sighed. "Nothing to do with you or him."

"Hey, if I had my way then they'd be swollen for a different reason." Kuroo winked.

Akaashi was slightly ashamed of how his body reacted to the implication in that statement. He was distracted however by Bokuto pressing his hips against the small of his back and a lazy kiss on his exposed neck.

"Morning Koutarou..." Akaashi hummed.

"Morning Keiji..." Bokuto replied.

"So who's hungover?" Kuroo remarked, laughing when Bokuto stuck up a middle finger to him.

"I'm just in a cuddly mood..." Bokuto pouted. "In fact get over here bro."

Kuroo complied, shuffling over and letting the other captain drape an arm over his waist, he'd be lying if he said he wasn't enjoying this. The setter found himself in a captain sandwich again, not complaining as he felt both of the firm chests pressed up against him and Kuroo's breath on his face. It was almost like Bokuto wanted them to kiss whilst sober, they'd exchanged enough kisses last night and Akaashi was pretty sure Kuroo's hand had dipped below the waistband of his shorts multiple times.

"You okay with this?" Kuroo whispered to both of them but Akaashi was the one expected to answer.

"Yeah..." Akaashi replied, placing a hand on Kuroo's chest. "I'm content."

Bokuto hummed, pressing a kiss to Akaashi's neck before craning his head around the other and raising an eyebrow at Kuroo. The other captain raised an eyebrow in response before leaning forward and pressing his lips against Bokuto's. Akaashi watched with interest, having watched this exchange multiple times in the past few hours.

"Y'know...at some point we'll have to explain this to everyone." Kuroo sighed, resettling at face-level with Akaashi.

"I'm sure it'll be fine."

Akaashi could feel sleep beckoning him, laying in Bokuto's arms always did this to him and the added warmth that Kuroo's body gave off only heightened the effect. He was drifting asleep as Bokuto and Kuroo started talking in whispers, he wasn't really paying attention to what they were saying as he let his eyes slip shut.

"...you don't find this weird though? Like at all?" Bokuto asked.

"Nope..." Kuroo replied. "You're both my best friends and well...hella attractive too."

Bokuto snorted, nuzzling Akaashi's neck as he slept. "I don't like sharing though..."

Kuroo had to laugh. "I hear ya Bo, I wouldn't either if I was in your position."

"But if Keiji wants to...then I won't stop him. Just be careful with him yeah? I love him..."

Kuroo nodded, pressing a kiss to Bokuto's forehead and rolling onto his back to stare at the ceiling. He was mulling over how best to try and break this news to his friends, deciding that such heavy thoughts were a bad idea so early in the day, he glanced over at the setter who was still asleep. The calm aura that Akaashi always gave off put him at ease, he could definitely see the effect he had on Bokuto and ached to get closer to both of them in this new way. It would take time of course, but he wasn't opposed to that in the slightest.


	13. How to get away with kidnapping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Who the fuck steals a person!" Aomine exploded.
> 
> "You mean kidnap." Kagami corrected, narrowly avoiding a kick to the shin for his smart-ass comment.
> 
> "Shut up bakagami, I'm serious!"
> 
> "Hi serious, I'm Kagami."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I try to be funny, no idea if it translates into good fic but oh well~

Chapter Thirteen

How to get away with kidnapping

As with any morning after a drunk night, there were a lot of side glances at each other across the breakfast table. Daichi and Suga were still nowhere to be seen and Asahi was not only worrying about them, but also the distinct lack of Tsukishima and Yamaguchi. Ennoshita was no help whatsoever as he was very 'sleepy' and kept resting his head on Tanaka's shoulder, the only good thing about the two freshmen being missing was that Kageyama and Hinata were a lot quieter.

"So you're telling me Sawamura got drunk and now him and Sugawara are making out in a closet somewhere?" Kuroo remarked, Lev was nodding in response, having remembered bits and pieces of the night before.

"Actually Suga was the one who initiated it." Kasamatsu sighed. "I dunno, my attention was elsewhere."

"Oh we know." Aomine teased. "Kise is sporting a nice lovebite there senpai."

"Shut up brat."

Riko had been the only girl to actually come out of the room that morning, she seemed to be in a laid back mood and deflected any questions regarding the other three. Furihata pulled her aside and seemed to be in a very worked up state - probably trying to explain that he and Akashi were now a thing - when she laughed and hugged him. He looked very bewildered but took it as a good sign.

"So seriously, has anyone seem Tsukishima?" Asahi asked.

"Eh? Kenma didn't you say you were trying to find him?" Yaku asked the setter who tried not to flinch at suddenly being addressed.

"Uhm...yes. And he said he'd rather not be disturbed."

"Can you at least tell me where they are before Suga kills me?" Asahi pleaded.

Kenma looked uncomfortable, beckoning the two third years closer and whispering something to them. Whatever was said made Asahi blush very heavily and Yaku clear his throat loudly.

"Well. Okay then."

"What is it?" Hinata asked, noting his senpai's sudden attitude change.

"Never mind." Yaku grunted, he wanted to confide in Kuroo but knew that the relationship between him and the first year would probably hinder any sensible judgment. Instead, he picked the other setter. "Akaashi, a word please."

 

* * *

 

 

"A-Are you mad Kei?" Yamaguchi murmured, nuzzling the other's neck.

"Why would I be?" Tsukishima replied. "You had every right to decline."

"B-But--"

Tsukishima quietened the other with a soft kiss. "I'm not mad, I'm actually far from it. If you had gone along with it then I probably wouldn't have forgiven myself."

They were alone in one of the club rooms, by sheer luck they hadn't been found by anyone other than Kenma so far and Tsukishima wanted to keep it that way. Tsukishima didn't remember drinking _that_ much, but Kenma had informed them both of Himuro's 'helpful addition' to the drinks roster and the sudden change in his behaviour the previous night suddenly made more sense. He hadn't really intended on confessing to Yamaguchi in the way he did, but alcohol has a habit of making you do things you wouldn't normally even consider.

One thing had led to another, short and sweet kisses had turned more heated, gentle touches became more needy and sexual. The next thing either of them remembered was stumbling into a club room tugging at each other's clothing. At some point, Yamaguchi had sobered up enough to come to his senses and stopped them doing anything they'd both regret. Tsukishima at the time had a one track mind and drunkenly tried to convince the other that it was a good idea to continue, but the pinch server stood his ground and said no.

Which led to the other falling asleep shortly after, and Yamaguchi remaining awake long enough to go into a full-fledged panic about whether he'd jeopardized their entire friendship by saying no. As the morning sunlight flooded into the room, Tsukishima had woken up with a pounding headache and a vague memory of trying to fuck his best friend. For a while neither said anything, Yamaguchi was the first to press a light kiss to Tsukishima's cheek in an attempt to break the silence.

"...still..." Yamaguchi whispered. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologise...I'm the one who should be saying sorry." Tsukishima whispered back, running a hand up and down the other's back as he held him close. "I nearly ruined everything we had."

"...what are we though Kei? I-I didn't know you felt that way about me...or was that just--" Yamaguchi started, pulling back and regarding Tsukishima with anxious eyes, he was biting on his lower lip a lot between sentences and the worry was clear in his voice which only made Tsukishima's heart ache.

"It wasn't just the alcohol." He stated quietly. "Tadashi..."

"Kei." The other breathed.

"You don't hate me do you? For being so..."

Yamaguchi shook his head. "You stopped when I asked you to, that's the important part. A-And I was just as into it as you were so I'm partly to blame too." His cheeks turned rosy, burying his face in the crook of Tsukishima's neck again. "L-Let's do it when we're at home...when we're not drunk."

"Y-Yeah.." Tsukishima blushed as he thought more about it, snapping out of his thoughts to nuzzle the other's neck. He felt a little less guilty now but would still have to deal with everyone else potentially finding out about all this, he wasn't sure how secretive Kenma was. He just hoped he wasn't going to get a lecture from Suga, but if his memory was correct; his senpai couldn't exactly talk much after last night.

They sat there for a while, simply enjoying each other's company before they heard footsteps in the hallway. A knock at the door struck fear into Tsukishima's being but when Akaashi was the one to enter, he sighed in relief. The setter explained that Kenma had told Yaku and Asahi what he had learnt, citing that the two third years were concerned, before he was summoned to find the pair and check they were okay.

"Yaku was going to send Kuroo but he sensed that would be a bad idea." Akaashi finished, a slight smile on his face.

"Yeah..." Tsukishima breathed. "I guess this is an unofficial order to come down to breakfast?"

"In a sense." Akaashi replied. "Only if you're okay to, there's no strict plan for today as half of us are hungover or stupidly tired."

Yamaguchi hummed against Tsukishima. "I'm hungry Kei."

"Okay...I guess we can't hide from our stupid teammates forever."

The setter left ahead of them, no doubt to scope out what lunacy had taken place since he left. Yamaguchi nervously let Tsukishima lead the way, only calming down slightly when the other took hold of his hand and linked their fingers together. They were just about to enter the cafeteria when Tanaka encountered them in the hallway, he looked between the two of them with a slight smirk before telling them that Suga and Daichi were still no-shows and he was going to find them. Tsukishima nodded but said nothing, letting their senpai past before continuing into the dining area. Asahi seemed relieved when they showed up, even more so when they started eating. Hinata was staring at them and Tsukishima wanted to throw his bowl of rice over the other.

Kuroo and Bokuto were equally as interested but didn't comment on them, instead Kuroo was now hatching his revenge plan on the miracles who had started a prank war. It involved mayonnaise, some duct tape and Akaashi being a distraction. The setter didn't know this until Bokuto tugged him over and started being strangely affectionate. The only element left to chance was who exactly was their target.

"So we have Aomine, Kise...Akashi, that giant dude, glasses guy and...that guy who reminds me of Kenma." Kuroo counted off.

"Oh and the dude who spiked all our drinks." Bokuto added.

"Yeah but that was funny as fuck."

"Who was the one who put ice in your bed?"

"That would've been Aomine." Kenma piped up.

"Perfect, so Aomine." Kuroo declared, smirking as he started plotting out how this prank was going to work. "This'll be fool proof."

"If you're the one planning it, then it'll have to be." Kenma remarked, getting a look of mock hurt from his friend.

 

* * *

 

 

It was discovered that Momoi was not a morning person, at least not after a night of drinking anyway. She declined to get up when Riko did and only reluctantly left the warmth of her futon when Yachi declared that the showers were now open. Kiyoko offered her some tea before any of them left the room to go and wash off the smell of alcohol. Momoi had the distinct feeling that one of 'her boys' had done something stupid but couldn't find the energy to interrogate any of them.

Only when Himuro greeted her with a smile did she remember what happened.

"You!" She pointed at him, he didn't react. They were stood in the hallway that led to the sports building where the showers were located.

"Yes?"

"You! You spiked everyone's drinks!"

"...I did." Himuro shrugged. "And no-one died."

Kiyoko giggled slightly and tugged on Momoi's arm to coerce her to the showers. Himuro himself shook his head in amusement before continuing back towards the shared room. With most of the guys now showering, he was surprised to find Kuroo and Bokuto already showered and 'up to something' for lack of a better phrase.

"Is that duct tape?" Himuro asked, regretting it immediately.

"Yep, we're getting Aomine back for putting ice in Kuro's bed." Bokuto proudly stated, getting a glare from Kuroo.

"Idiot! Don't tell him that!"

Himuro sighed slightly, already seeing how well this was gonna pan out. He noticed the empty jar of mayo that had no reason to be in the shared room and asked the two third years about it. They looked at each other and shrugged, the second year decided he was better off not knowing. He knew that Aomine had indeed pranked Kuroo but for what reason, he didn't know. Murasakibara was saying far away from any of these shenanigans so the shooter really wasn't that bothered as long as he didn't get dragged into it.

"Don't you think this prank is a little too cruel..." Akaashi hummed as he returned, towel draped over his head and body still slightly damp from his shower.

"Nah, besides we're not _actually_...y'know. Just implying heavily that we are." Kuroo replied, talking in some vague code as some of their teammates were back and he didn't want anyone letting slip what was really happening. This was a prank set in several stages after all, and he wasn't letting a first year 'punk' get away with making his bed wet.

"Still think it's harsh." Akaashi sighed, sitting down next to Bokuto and taking hold of his hand. "But I'll go along with it."

"There's the Keiji we know and love." Bokuto swooned, kissing his cheek. "So you know what you gotta do yeah?"

Akaashi nodded. "And I'll text you when I've done it."

Kuroo smirked, leaning over and planting a kiss on Akaashi's forehead. "This is gonna be hilarious, Bo make sure you film it yeah?"

Bokuto gave him a thumbs up before releasing Akaashi's hand so the other could slip out to get on with his part of the prank. They just had to wait for the right opportunity now, and hope to hell no-one tried to interfere.

 

* * *

 

 

Suga was somewhat mortified at the amount of marks still visible over the collar of his shirt, he was also very aware that he had several missed calls on his cell phone and over ten texts from Asahi asking what happened to him and Daichi. Arms wrapping around his waist pulled him from his worried thoughts, a gentle kiss to his exposed neck further put him at ease.

"Don't worry so much." Daichi hummed. "It's not like we've lectured any of them about it yet so they can't call us hypocrites."

"But we're meant to set an example Daichi." Suga huffed, typing out a reply to Asahi assuring their friend that they hadn't died.

"And that example is that it's okay to let loose and have fun."

"Hmm..." Suga wasn't entirely convinced, nevertheless, he linked his fingers with Daichi's and let him lead him back the main building. The first person they came across was Tanaka, he didn't mention the marks on either of them but did divulge that everyone was present and accounted for after last night. They had only been in Karasuno's room for a few moments when Yaku came in to declare the showers were now open. He took one look at Suga's markings and gave him a sympathetic smile, his own bite-mark standing out on his neck.

If any of their coaches saw them, they'd all be nicknamed leopards with the way things were going.

"Suga-senpai, can I ask you something?" Hinata called, getting an alarmed look from Kageyama.

"Sure Hinata, what is it?"

"Where have you and captain been all morning?"

Suga's cheeks blossomed as he coughed to try and hide his flusteredness. "Uhm, we didn't sleep in the main building." Was all he said. "I'm sure Asahi-san and Ennoshita-san took care of you."

Noya raised an eyebrow and was about to say something when Asahi covered his mouth. Things seemed to return to normal for a while, everyone ate breakfast and showered, there wasn't a single argument between anyone.

That was until Aomine came back from his shower in a bad mood.

"What happened?" Kasamatsu asked, the only person in the shared room at the time.

"Some bastard replaced all my shower gel with mayonnaise!" Aomine threw the now empty bottle at the wall, it bounced off and nearly hit the rival captain.

"Well shit, any ideas?"

"Gotta be Kuroo, that bastard." Aomine was still fuming as he rummaged around his bag for a new bottle. "I had to use some of Kise's and now I smell like cherries or some--"

"Strawberries." Kasamatsu corrected. "It's strawberries."

"Whatever!"

Kagami walked in to find out what Aomine was complaining about. The ace was halfway through his rant when he noticed something duct taped to his futon.

_Your boyfriend is now in our possession, if you wish to see him you will comply with our demands--_

"Who the fuck steals a person!" Aomine exploded.

"You mean kidnap." Kagami corrected, narrowly avoiding a kick to the shin for his smart-ass comment.

"Shut up bakagami, I'm serious!"

"Hi serious, I'm Kagami."

"I swear to god Taiga--"

"Who kidnapped who?" Kise was the next person to come in to find out why Aomine was yelling.

"Those Nekoma bastards kidnapped Ryou!"

Kasamatsu sighed heavily before delivering a swift kick to the back of Aomine's knees, quietening him down and plucking the note from his hand.

"Your boyfriend is now in our possession, if you wish to see him you will comply with our demands and get Maji burger take out for the entire Karasuno team and whomever they desire, they will have the next note within their room and be able to assist you further." He read out, giving Aomine an unimpressed glance. "If you do not comply then we have no option than to assume you do not wish to see him again and will act accordingly."

"Whelp, guess you're going to Maji burger Aho." Kagami shrugged.

"Like hell, where the fuck is Kuroo?"

Aomine didn't even wait for an answer as he took the note back and went off in search of the captain. He found the third year with Yaku and Kenma and abruptly interrupted their conversation by waving the note in front of him.

"What am I looking at?" Kuroo asked.

" _This_ is your shitty ransom note. Where the hell did you put Ryou?"

"Ransom?" Yaku repeated, glaring at Kuroo. "What is he talking about?"

"This asshole stole--"

"Kidnapped." Kagami corrected form behind him.

"--Sakurai. And I now have to apparently get an entire team Maji take out for his return."

Yaku studied the note, it wasn't Kuroo's handwriting that was for sure, it was too neat and the grammar was too good. "Huh. Kuroo what did you do?"

"Me?!" The captain squawked. "I only put mayonnaise in his shower gel, I have nothing to do with whatever this is."

Aomine snorted. "Like hell, who else would go this low for a prank?"

"Well I'm insulted." Kuroo remarked. "But I have no idea where your boyfriend is. Maybe you should follow the note's instructions."

Without another word, Aomine stormed off with Kagami on his heels. Kuroo suppressed his laughter as Yaku glared at him.

"So what did you do?"

" _I_ didn't do anything Yaku-san~" Kuroo smirked. "I didn't do anything at all."

One round of Maji burger later, Aomine got an envelope handed to him. Apparently it had arrived on the door of Karasuno's room and no-one knew where it came from. Thanks to Kise, everyone now knew about this supposed kidnapping and no-one actually knew whether it was a prank or not. Suga and Yaku had established that it had to be, no-one outside of the group knew that Aomine and Sakurai were together and the fact the note appeared taped to Aomine's futon said it was someone who knew the sleeping arrangements.

Himuro had his suspicions but he didn't feel like ruining the fun.

"Okay so what does this say..." Aomine sighed, Karasuno certainly weren't complaining as they just got free food out of it. "Congrats on feeding the crows, now go and visit Momoi and see if she knows anything."

Kagami had noted that Kuroko had been strangely absent, he interrogated the other miracles who were no help whatsoever, and even Karasuno hadn't seen him since breakfast. He was distracted however by Aomine dragging him down the hallway, apparently he was now helping Aomine find Sakurai even if his own boyfriend was doing his disappearing act.

"Oi Satsuki--"

"Dai-chan get out!" Momoi snapped, shoving both of them out of the door, following and closing the door quickly behind them. "Didn't I teach you to knock, what if we had been getting changed?"

"Yeah yeah, whatever, have you see Ryou? Or heard who stole him?"

"Eh? Ryou-kun? No? and how do you steal a person baka?" The girl asked, hands on her hips in her usual lecture posture.

"The note said you know!"

"What note?" The piece of paper was handed to her and she read it, confused but also slightly amused. She dug in the pocket of her shorts and handed them a folded up note. "This was on my pillow when I came back from my shower."

Kagami wanted to die, more notes meant more hysterical Aomine.

_Getting annoyed yet? Maybe you'll think twice before starting a prank war with us. Go to the top floor and we're sure you'll find the room easily enough. It'll just take you a while to get inside, just don't flood the place._

"Let's go." Aomine grunted, shoving the note into Kagami’s chest. Kise and Takao had caught up with them to find out what on earth was happening only to find Aomine already heading for the stairs.

The four of them reached the top of the stairs and nearly fell over one another when Aomine stopped in his tracks. All along the hallway were rows, and rows of cups all filled with water. It was impossible to step between them as they were placed so close together, the only way to get through would be to move each cup one at a time.

"So that's what they meant by 'don't flood the place' huh..." Takao remarked.

"God fucking dammit." Aomine sighed heavily. "I'm going to kill whoever's behind this."

 

* * *

 

 

Akaashi was the epitome of polite when it came to acquaintances, Sakurai had fallen for his 'could you help me with something' routine and the setter had lured him upstairs. Sakurai had been calm about it all, even when Akaashi shut the door and told him he couldn't leave, he expected the first year to be scared but he actually found the entire situation amusing.

"So you're saying Kuroo was so annoyed by Aomine putting ice in his bed that he planned all this?"

"In a sense, yes. I think Kuroo let it go to his head slightly but it's something to do whilst people are sobering up."

"I hope he isn't too mad...Daiki that is. He's very possessive."

Akaashi nodded, knowing how that felt. "Once he knows you're safe I imagine he'll be fine. Kuroo on the other hand might be dead when he gets his hands on him."

"I'll talk him out of it." Sakurai smiled.

Raised voices from the end of the hall prompted Akaashi to stand up, the room he had selected had a walk in closet that he was to hide in before they were found, lest he get caught up in the chaos too.

"You know what to say right?"

"That Kuroo did it?"

"Yep." Akaashi smiled. "Is the tape too tight?"

Sakurai tested the bounds carefully placed on his wrists by the setter. "Nope, it's okay."

"Good, well I hope Aomine doesn't kill my new boyfriend too much." He sighed, having had more than enough time to gossip with Sakurai about how the hell he was dating two guys at once. "Bokuto would be heartbroken."

Sakurai laughed, watching as the setter disappeared into the closet and closed the door behind him but leaving just enough open for his phone's camera to shoot out of the room and capture Aomine's rescue. Akaashi wasn't sure if this was a prank or some elaborate matchmaking thing that was a few hours too late.

Sure enough about ten minutes later the door burst open and Aomine's eyes settled on his lover, he immediately slumped to his knees and tore the duct tape away before pulling Sakurai into a tight bear hug. He babbled out that he was sorry it happened and how he was going to kill whoever was responsible, Sakurai declined to tell him who masterminded all of it until Aomine _promised_ not to actually hurt anyone.

The Nekoma captain wasn't surprised when Aomine stormed downstairs and accused him of starting a prank war. Bokuto hooted with laughter because Kuroo simply stated he hadn't written these notes that Aomine claimed he had - a certain other captain had but he wasn't owning up to that anytime soon. Yaku admitted that the handwriting was too good for Kuroo but that the idea itself reeked of Nekoma, and so if it wasn't official already, there was now a prank war occurring.

"So you could say the bar has been set." Kuroko remarked to Kagami.

"And where the hell have you been all day?" Kagami asked, partly annoyed at the other.

Kuroko simply smiled. "You'll understand in a few days."

"Oh great, Kurokocchi is being cryptic again." Kise complained.

"Kise you wouldn't know cryptic if it bit you on the ass."

"No-one bites my ass Kagamicchi, well sometimes Yukio slap--"

Kasamatsu didn't hesitate to slap his hand over the blond's mouth to prevent anything else being said, even if it was somewhat too late for that.


	14. Competition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> he realised a second too late what was about to happen when he was thrown into the deeper water. He was still wearing his clothes so when he stood up and his shirt stuck to his chest like a second layer of skin, Kuroo nearly got a nosebleed.
> 
> And then someone had a great idea.

Chapter Fourteen

Competition

 

After being cooped up in the school for a day and that ending _so well_ , it was a relief to everyone that the heat began to climb again, warranting a trip to the beach where this chaos all began in the first place. Of course it did present a few of them with a problem; the evidence of their night of drinking being on full show. For most of them, it wasn't even an issue, everyone expected certain people - mainly Kise - to be slightly exhibitionist about their lovebites. There was almost a sense of pride from them. Others, not so much.

"Daichi, they're gonna think we did something--" Suga started in a hushed whisper as they walked the short distance to the beach.

"Koushi, it'll be fine." Daichi replied, cool as a cucumber despite the very real anxiety about him. "Everyone will be too busy trying to bury each other in the sand to care anyway."

Suga hummed, still feeling slightly uneasy but trying to brush it off. It was the final full day they'd be spending at Nekoma before heading back to their own prefecture for the rest of the summer - he was pretty sure none of the freshmen had finished their homework and even he was guilty of leaving some of it until the last few days - so he tried to let himself have fun and not think about anything else.

Hinata and Takao were bounding ahead of the group, with Lev and Kise not far behind them. The sand stretched out before them as they reached the end of the pathway, there were a few families and other groups of teens but that hardly fazed them as they picked out a spot for the entire group to settle down. When the rest of them caught up, Lev was already looking towards the waves lapping against the sand with a small grin. By the time they got the parasols set up and the towels laid out, the first year was practically begging to drag someone to go swimming with him.

"Mori-san~" He sang into Yaku's ear, much to the third year's horror at his first name being shortened to a degree. "Come swimming with me?"

"Uh, not now Lev." Yaku shrugged him off. "In a while yeah? Take Hinata with you or something."

Lev pouted slightly, sneaking a messy kiss to Yaku's cheek before grabbing Hinata and sprinting to the water's edge. Kise quickly got with the program and playfully shoved Kagami to get him to join them. Noya wasn't about to be left out of the watery fun, jumping on Tanaka's back and yelling 'charge!' to get his teammate to join the race to the ocean.

"Well, now that those idiots are gone..." Midorima sighed, digging through his bag and bringing out a book.

Takao hummed in content as he settled down to sleep next to the other. Aomine snorted in response to Midorima's remark, he too feeling lethargic but also fiercely protective of Sakurai as Kuroo and Bokuto weren't exactly miles away. He was happy to simply lay with his head in Sakurai's lap and doze in the shade. Kuroko and Kenma exchanged a stoic glance before nodding subtlety, unknown to their friends, they had become rather close in the short time they had known each other. The lack of verbal conversation was made up through instant messaging and knowing glances, they had kept each other in the loop with the prank war and were making sure to document the drunken shenanigans whilst they themselves remained sober. Someone had to embarrass all their friends after all.

Despite the awkwardness some of the boys were feeling after the drinking drama, Kiyoko and Yachi hadn't felt any different. The morning after Kiyoko had the slightest of hangovers but confessed that she really didn't feel under the influence at the time when she went through with the dare. Yachi had become a blushing mess and nearly woke up a very hungover Momoi in the process of trying to apologise for something she didn't do, Kiyoko had giggled and coaxed the younger girl to calm down and that was that. There was a level of uncertainty around where they stood in their relationship but if Kiyoko wrapping an arm around Yachi's shoulders and warding off any guys who tried to hit on them said anything, it was that they were definitely 'more than friends'.

"Eh Riko-chan." Momoi hummed, unwrapping one of Murasakibara's many candies that he had bought with him. "Do you think I should tell Imayoshi about Dai-chan dating Sakurai?"

"Hmm...nah. Let him figure it out on his own. That's what I'm doing with Hyuuga regarding Furihata and Akashi." Riko replied, glancing up at the volleyball net that was being set up ahead of the beach volleyball match that Kuroo and Bokuto just _had_ to have. "Oi, do you think that I should get Seirin to play volleyball at some point?"

Momoi giggled, sharing a glance with Himuro as she popped the hard candy into her mouth. "Nah, I think they fail enough as it is."

"Hey!"

Tsukishima had regrettably agreed to take part in Kuroo and Bokuto's stupid volleyball match, Yamaguchi sat on the sidelines with Ennoshita and Asahi. Suga and Daichi had been persuaded to take part making the teams three-all. Kuroo protested that it was unfair for Bokuto to have Akaashi on his team so he got given Suga - much to the setter's distaste - and Tsukishima whilst Daichi joined the owl duo. It was meant to be a relaxed game with no consequences, well that went out the figurative window when not only did the rivalry between the captains start up, but also a playful tease from Suga got Daichi's competitive nature pumping. Tsukishima found himself in the middle of two different battles and he was not having fun in the slightest. It was only made worst by Kageyama declining to take his place, the other first year seemed to like watching him suffer for one reason or another and Tsukishima made a mental note to get him back for that one.

It was far too hot to be constantly running around and diving on the scorching sand, Suga made the call to take a break as the midday sun beat down on them, calling everyone to rest under the shade of the parasol for a while. Akashi and Furihata had gone with Yaku to get cold drinks for everyone, rejoining the group as Takao was unceremoniously awoken by Kise and Hinata flopping on top of him.

"Geez calm down." Himuro sighed as Takao responded to this wake-up call by tickling Hinata. Murasakibara could sleep through anything but even he was getting a headache from all the loud noise.

In between the squabbling and shrieks of laughter, Noya had proposed a sandcastle-building contest, thus sealing everyone's fates for the afternoon despite no-one really having any shovels or buckets. Not one to let something so mundane stop him, Akashi declared Midorima would go and buy some from one of the local stores - the ace glared at his former captain but when presented with Akashi's wallet he wasn't about to say no. Momoi pined to go with him and in turn dragged Yachi with her.

Whilst waiting for the ace to return, Suga demanded that everyone reapplied their sunscreen, his motherly nature shining through when everyone groaned and he only became more adamant. Asahi was the first to offer his lover a back-rub as long as he put on sunscreen and Noya definitely wasn't about to turn that down, many of the others soon followed suit and a sudden quietness fell over the group.

"Did you intend for that to happen?" Daichi whispered in Suga's ear as the setter lay on his stomach.

"What?" Suga murmured back, breath hitching as his shoulders relaxed under the other's touch.

"Everyone's really calm, it's like they’re in a trance."

Looking around, Suga could see that. Even the likes of Hinata and Kageyama were subdued as the setter seemed to fall asleep as Hinata slowly rubbed circles into his tense back. Perhaps the most surprising was how at ease Tsukishima seemed suddenly, he had been in a somewhat bad mood since the volleyball match but Yamaguchi's touch had done wonders. He was leaning forward, head resting on the server's shoulder and his glasses neatly set aside, Yamaguchi's fingers traced his exposed back, no longer rubbing lotion into the pale skin but simply leaving soothing touches. It made Suga smile into his folded arms, to see such innocent acts of love from his kouhai.

 

* * *

 

 

The sandcastle-building contest was as dramatic as expected, the tranquil feeling over the group was disturbed by Midorima's return and it was as if no-one had been falling asleep - Kagami was adamant that he hadn't fallen asleep but Kuroko had the pictures to say otherwise - with rivalries kicking into gear once more. It was decided that Ennoshita and Akaashi would judge the creations, as prospective captains of their teams they supposedly had to know how to make tough decisions - or that's what Kuroo had said anyway, no-one really understood his logic.

There was much talk of sabotage when Aomine and Kagami's tower 'fell' due to the foundations being taken out by a rogue bucket being thrown over Tanaka's shoulder, likewise when a bucket of water got 'dropped' on Bokuto's castle by Kise. Kenma agreed to help Kuroo and Lev with their castle on the condition that he didn't have to move once he had sat down, his attention to detail was useful when he pointed out the lopsided nature of the two turrets that Lev spent ten minutes trying to sculpt.

"So when we're done...who gets to destroy all of them?" Takao asked Hinata as they continued digging out a moat that they weren't sure how they were going to fill with water.

"Dunno, but we have to beat Kuroo-senpai!" He declared, gaining a slight snort from Kageyama that he responded do by shoving the other. The setter abandoned filling up the bucket with sand and tackled Hinata into their own castle. Takao rolled his eyes and laughed, waving to Midorima who was still sat under the parasol with Murasakibara and declining to move, he smiled slightly and waved back.

Deciding to let the freshmen do what they liked, Daichi and Asahi had walked to the water's edge to take advantage of the other's being too distracted to ambush them, Suga stayed behind to keep an eye on the contest, adamant that someone had to keep everyone in line. The captain had been eager to get the ace's thoughts on how all these new relationships had shifted the chemistry in the team and this seemed like the perfect time to do so.

"I mean, Yuu and I have been dating for a while and nothing much changed." Asahi sighed, watching the waves wash over his feet as they watched the ocean, there were a few ships on the horizon, accompanied by gulls screeching in the sky, they somewhat reminded them both of their team for obvious reasons.

"Yeah but now we have three, possibly four changes. Maybe even five if Kiyoko and Yachi are actually a thing." Daichi replied. "Getting to nationals isn't just going to be a strain on the team, it'll be a strain on all those new relationships. If we fail..." He trailed off.

"Now who's being a 'negative goatee'?" Asahi teased, chuckling slightly. "True if we fail then it'll hurt, but if they make it through that then they can make it through anything...they'll support each other Daichi, you know that."

Daichi nodded, running a hand through his hair. It was still too hot to be debating their uncertain future, he stepped forward until he was knee-deep in the ocean, turning slightly and abruptly scooping water at the ace. Asahi squealed like a girl which set Daichi off in a fit of laughter until a tidal wave hit him and sent him toppling further into the water. Suga had been watching them and couldn't help but laugh at the image of their captain getting almost tackled into the water by the ace who once was convinced he was hated. His laughter prompted Noya and Tanaka to follow his gaze, a wicked grin spreading out over both their faces before they charged off - castle abandoned - to tackle Asahi into the water too.

For Ennoshita and Akaashi, it was fairly easily to pick which were the better castles, it was a close call between Nekoma's two-turret design, Aomine and Kagami's somewhat _Game of Thrones_ inspired palace and Akashi's complex fortress. The rest of them were either half-finished or already being demolished by somewhat salty rivals. Most of Karasuno had departed to gang up on their captain in a water fight, leaving Tsukishima and Yamaguchi to help Suga decide what to do about food that evening.

"This one." Akaashi stated, pointing at Aomine and Kagami's castle. Ennoshita nodded which led to Aomine punching the air in victory and teasing Akashi, who for once was taking failure in his stride, even laughing about it.

Kuroo however was being a bit of a drama queen. "Keiji _why_?" He complained, draping himself over the setter who chuckled in response, gaining a slightly shocked look from the captain who hadn't really heard Akaashi _laugh_ before.

"It was impressive." Akaashi replied, shrugging his tall boyfriend off him and dusting the sand off his shoulders. "And you would've only won because of Kenma."

"It's true." Lev nodded, hugging Kenma and wondering why he nearly got put in a headlock for his trouble. Yaku sighed as he drew the first year into his arms and coaxed him to calm down already, letting Lev nuzzle his neck like a cat.

Bokuto used Akaashi being distracted as an opportunity to pick him up bridal style, the setter was not only caught off guard but also unable to squirm out of the other's hold. He started wondering what Bokuto was planning as he was carried towards the ocean, he realised a second too late what was about to happen when he was thrown into the deeper water. He was still wearing his clothes so when he stood up and his shirt stuck to his chest like a second layer of skin, Kuroo nearly got a nosebleed.

And then someone had a great idea.

"Wet t-shirt contest?" Momoi asked, Aomine waited to be hit for being a pervert but to his surprise Momoi was _very_ into the idea.

"But how is it fair that four lesbians judge it?" Kagami asked when Momoi declared that the managers would be the judges, he narrowly avoided getting a water bottle thrown at his head by Riko for assuming things before Kiyoko pointed out that surely it would mean they were being less biased.

Of course, not everyone was totally up for this. Kuroo and Bokuto were definitely game, Akaashi sighed and was adamant he wasn't going to be dragged further into hell, Aomine and Kagami convinced Himuro _and_ Kise to agree to participate. After much persuading - basically Suga whispering a lot in his ear - Daichi accepted the challenge too, Tanaka and Noya nearly fell over themselves volunteering but Asahi put his foot down and declared he was staying _way_ out of it. Kasamatsu and Yaku both declined too, volunteering to be the ones pouring water over their stupid friends instead. Akashi agreed to be the host of this very strange contest and that was the stage set for a rather voyeuristic event.

Kuroko and Kenma were definitely not missing this, Midorima buried his face in his book and Murasakibara vowed to only stay awake until after Himuro was on. Sakurai and Furihata sat with the Karasuno first years awaiting this strange show to begin, no-one was really sure what the victor would gain - probably just his pride - but it was entertaining nonetheless.

Momoi liberated Aomine of his phone and used it to play music, cheesy pop music from several years ago just to add some 'charm' to the already weird event.

"Right, whenever you're ready Akashi-kun!" Momoi smiled.

There was something about watching several well-toned athletes getting soaked to the skin that got Momoi hot under the collar, she may have been committed to Riko but that didn't mean she couldn't admire a pretty body when she saw it. By the look on her girlfriend's face she couldn't argue much either. There were a few comedic segments, like when Kise decided to take the half-filled bucket from Yaku and drench Kasamatsu; the captain's shirt stuck to him like glue and water trickled down his toned legs. Safe to say, Kise found himself running towards the relative safety of the ocean whilst Kasamatsu followed him shouting half-hearted insults.

Ennoshita felt like dying when Tanaka bypassed the shirt part of the contest, took the bucket from Yaku and drenched himself before trying to do some kind of seductive dance - that Noya had totally _not_ put him up to - that involved gesturing that the other second year should 'hit him up' with a cringe-worthy wink. Suga laughed from beside him but was unaware that Daichi's usual self-consciousness was about to be thrown out the window for this.

Aomine was still salty at Kuroo for that whole 'kind of kidnapping Sakurai but not really kidnapping him' fiasco, he acquired Kagami in his bid to win this contest and took a page out of Tanaka's book. Which ended as spectacularly as anyone could imagine. Momoi was very conflicted at the sight of her childhood best friend moving his hips in such a fashion against his rival's. Kuroko wasn't sure _what_ to feel, not that he let it show but Kenma couldn't help but giggle slightly at just how wide Kuroko's eyes went when his boyfriend got rid of his shirt and the indecency continued. Yachi had gone very red as her eyes flickered over the tanned skin and shifting muscles and was on the edge of asking someone to throw a bucket of water over _her_.

Eventually Akashi managed to intimidate them enough to stop, he sighed heavily and tried to not let what he just witnessed get to him as he gestured for the volleyball captains to get on with it. Kenma should've known that Kuroo and Bokuto would pull a similar trick but dragging Daichi into the mix created a troublesome trio that no-one really believed was happening.

Suga felt his throat go dry as he understood that they had seen Aomine and Kagami's fiasco as a challenge. Kuroo took the bucket from Yaku and said that he'd 'handle' it all, Bokuto didn't even wait for Kuroo to finish talking, he tipped the bucket back on the Nekoma captain and soaked him, catching more than his shirt with the water. Daichi accepted a bucket from Takao - who had taken over Kasamatsu's role since the captain was otherwise occupied - and only made Kuroo wetter. In a totally not sexual way. Kuroo somewhat regretted wearing the shorts he did that day.

Bokuto hooted with laughter, abruptly pulling Kuroo close and stealing his lips in a messy kiss. Daichi just emptied a bucket over Bokuto which did little to actually distract either of them, but when he loudly declared - in an obviously fake acting way - that he was still dry so he was going to just leave, the two captain's swiped two full buckets and dumped the water on to Karasuno's captain, completely soaking him.

A small noise left Suga's throat and Akaashi would've smirked slightly had he not been caught under the same spell. Kenma remained stoic but there was a slight rosy tint to his complexion that Kuroo would _definitely_ make fun of if he saw it.

Momoi was at a loss for words as the skin-tight shirts showed off the abs of each captain perfectly, Riko's enhanced perception of their physical attributes was in overdrive and she was beyond saying anything either. Kiyoko and Yachi had a feeling they'd never be able to look at their captain in the same way ever again.

Akashi shooed them away, declaring that Himuro was the last to 'perform'. He looked more than ready for this hell to be over, but he had a feeling Himuro being...well Himuro, was about to make it worse. Whilst he wasn't the bulkiest of the players, he had a certain charm to him that had gained him a lot of admirers both guys and girls alike. A lot of whom would kill to see him drenched.

He flicked his fringe out of his eyes and fluttered his eyes before Yaku and Takao poured the water over him. Murasakibara watched from afar with a certain hunger in his eyes and definitely looked like he was going to kill anyone who made a move on his lover. With another flick of his fringe and a soft smile, a small squeak left Momoi's throat, the shooter's muscles weren't as obvious as Aomine's or Bokuto's but it was the finesse and way that his shirt emphasized the curve of his hips that got to her.

"Well. I'm glad that's over." Akashi sighed. "So, who won?"

None of the girls could answer. And it was probably for the best, it gave everyone else a chance to cool down. Eventually it was declared a tie between Himuro and the volleyball captains. Aomine called it a fixed contest but was promptly tugged aside by Sakurai, the look in the smaller boy's eyes was one that reeked of 'clutch time Sakurai' and Aomine was then strangely okay with losing.

The afternoon was wearing on, the evening's plans consisted of a bonfire and _maybe_ roasting food over it but someone had to find wood and then they had to buy food. It was agreed that Karasuno would handle the wood gathering and the miracles would buy the food, leaving Nekoma and Fukurodani to keep their spot on the beach - not that they were in danger of being overcrowded. When the two groups left, Kuroo tugged Akaashi into his hold, kissing his cheek and chuckling when Bokuto simply watched with a relaxed smile.

"I thought you didn't like sharing Kou?" He hummed as Akaashi shoved him away, too hot to be dealing with being cuddled.

"I don't, but I get to see him every day so I'm not fussy right now."

"Hmm...maybe I should transfer to your school..." Kuroo sighed, leaning back on his hands.

"Like hell, I'm the ace of our team." Bokuto protested.

"I'm not setting for both of you." Akaashi stated.

"Not on court anyway..." Kuroo remarked. "In bed however..."

Akaashi's cheeks flared red, Bokuto raised an eyebrow but chuckled. "Are you saying you want a threesome now?"

They were out of earshot of the rest of their teams, just enough for this conversation to not be overheard - not with Lev pestering Kenma as loudly as he was anyway - so Kuroo saw no point in denying it.

"...if Keiji was down for it..."

Akaashi declined to answer, after seeing his lovers kiss that afternoon, he had started thinking up wild fantasies. Such thoughts he was keeping to himself for now at least. He was torn from his thoughts by Bokuto moving and whispering something in Kuroo's ear, whatever was said made the other captain blush and an uneasy laugh escape him.

"Oh really? Is that how it is?" Kuroo was suddenly whispering in his ear, voice low and going straight to his crotch. He swallowed as he tried to resist giving in. "The co-captain of Fukurodani likes to take charge in the bedroom does he?"

Akaashi's saving grace came in form of Lev bounding over and asking Kuroo if they could bury Yaku in the sand - the libero stating they could only do it if Kuroo said so. Kuroo laughed and said of course they could, much to Yaku's horror. The conversation was dropped, but Bokuto noticed the flush on Akaashi's cheeks and pressed an innocent kiss to his forehead, ruffling his hair as the setter sighed heavily.

He hadn't quite imagined Kuroo would be so quick to move things along, then again it was _Kuroo_ they were talking about. It was clear that some serious talking had to occur before Akaashi got too many crazy ideas for his mind to draw from for his wet dreams.


	15. Sunsets and campfires

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "No? Seems dangerous to be honest."
> 
> "Bah, not really."
> 
> "Did you forget your near death experience then?" 
> 
> "That was the jellyfish's fault, _not_ the cliff jumping."

Chapter Fifteen

Sunsets and campfires

_'cause I remember every sunset_  
_I remember every word you said_  
_We were never gonna say goodbye_  
_Tell me how to get back to,_  
_back to summer paradise with you_  
_and I'll be there in a heartbeat._

[Summer Paradise - Simple Plan]

 

 The late afternoon sun was low in the sky when the flames properly took hold, there had been a good amount of driftwood laying up and down the beach so there was a good chance the fire would burn way into the night if they let it. Wisps of smoke climbed into the reddish sky, the smell of burning wood only overpowered by the salty essence of the ocean. Even if most of them wanted to just relax in the firelight, some were restless.

"Will you sit still? You're kicking up sand and it'll put the fire out." Kasamatsu sighed as Hinata changed his sitting position again.

The first year pouted slightly and huffed, despite all the running around, swimming, play fighting and even walking up and down the beach to collect driftwood, he was still bursting with energy. He didn't want to bug anyone to do anything with him, he could see most of them were tired anyway with the way they were lazing around. He rested his head in Kageyama's lap, enjoying how the other's fingers ran through his hair as he fixed his gaze on the dancing flames whilst conversations continued around him. It wasn't long before his attention was caught by one particular conversation.

"You guys ever gone cliff jumping?" Kagami asked.

"No? Seems dangerous to be honest." Asahi replied, hoping that the ace wasn't about to start trying to convince him to do it.

"Bah, not really." Kagami sighed.

"Did you forget your near death experience then?" Himuro remarked, glancing up from where he had been idly braiding a section of Murasakibara's hair as the other slept.

"That was the jellyfish's fault, _not_ the cliff jumping."

"Jellyfish?" Hinata asked.

Himuro chuckled. "This was when we both lived in the states, we went down to the coast in the evening and rather than going to the beach like normal people, Taiga here decided he was going to jump off the cliff straight into the water. Well we didn't know there had been sightings of jellyfish that afternoon - usually reasonably rare for the time of year we were in - and well--"

"It was _fine_." Kagami cut in.

"You screamed like a girl and _I_ had to jump in to get you because _'I can't feel my legs Tatsuya, I'm gonna drown'_." Himuro continued, ignoring the death glare from the other. Aomine and Kise were trying to hide their laughter as Hinata stared wide eyed at the two aces.

"Was it that bad?"

Kagami huffed. "No, well. I was like thirteen so _kinda_. I've had worse wipe-outs than stings."

"Wipe...outs."

"Taiga can surf." Himuro smiled. "Pretty decent from what I remember."

"Well aren't we learning a lot about you today hm?" Aomine teased. "Should've mentioned it earlier, I would've challenged you to a contest."

"Which is _why_ I didn't mention it." Kagami narrowed his eyes at Himuro. "Anyway, cliff jumping itself is pretty fun...when you don't get attacked by the wildlife."

"Ooh can we go? I wanna try it!" Hinata glanced at Suga and Yaku as if they were legitimately the moms of the group. The two third years exchanged a glance, not entirely sure how to even answer.

"It's still daylight, we'll be fine." Kagami replied, standing up and playfully shoving Himuro to follow suit. "And we haven't seen any jellyfish all day."

Hinata scrambled to his feet, Kageyama rolled his eyes and let his boyfriend talk him into it. Noya was about to declare he'd join them but due to Asahi worrying for his safety he declined, Tanaka was already half-asleep so he was out, as was Kise. Takao sighed as he stood up to stretch, saying he'd come and spectate but not necessarily join them in flinging themselves at the ocean. Bokuto would've agreed to go but Akaashi was falling asleep on him, Kuroo outright dismissed the idea, stating he'd rather not die. Perhaps the most surprising was Akashi declaring he wanted to try it. Furihata shot him an alarmed look which had Aomine laughing, of course if his old captain was going for it then he'd join the fun.

With everyone gathered, Kagami was told strictly by Riko to make sure no-one died - or if they did then to bury them at sea, which got an alarmed look from Suga - so he and Himuro took it in turns to explain the general safety tips for cliff jumping.

"So we'll just check how deep the water is before anyone jumps." Kagami explained as they walked towards a small overhanging cliff. "Sand hurts if you fall onto it."

"No shit Taiga." Himuro hummed. "Also it's probably best you  wear all your clothes, if you hit the water chest first it'll hurt and you could end up with a massive bruise."

"Tsk, you make it sound like we're going to die." Aomine sighed.

"Well this is known as 'tombstoning' in some parts of the world." Himuro remarked, gesturing for them to climb onto the top of the cliff as Kagami waded into the water.

"Gee that's comforting..." Kageyama sighed, suddenly feeling a little weary about this.

Takao chuckled, asking if everyone had sensibly left their phones behind and getting handed several devices in return. He pocketed them all and took out his own phone to document this moment of stupidity between them all. They assembled on the cliff, waiting for Himuro and Kagami to determine if the water was deep enough. Gulls screeched overhead as the sea breeze picked up, bringing the fresh smelling air off the ocean as the sun continued her slow descent in the sky.

"So who wants to go first?" Aomine asked, looking expectantly at Akashi. The heir raised an eyebrow in return and looked to Hinata who was trembling slightly.

"Don't tell me you're nervous now..." Kageyama sighed, ruffling Hinata's hair.

"I-It's quite high up." Hinata replied.

Kagami and Himuro arrived, confirming that the water had a good few feet of depth and they should all be fine. Citing that the incoming tide would only add to it. As he was the one to bring it up, Kagami volunteered to go first, taking a run up and leaping off the edge.

"The important thing to remember is to hit the water feet first if possible." Himuro told them as Kagami hit the water with a splash. "Keep your arms locked by your sides too. It'll make it a lot less painful."

Kageyama could sense that for all his enthusiasm, Hinata wasn't going to budge yet. Aomine decided to go next, taking a longer run up and practically throwing himself off the ledge, completely ignoring Himuro's advice and effectively cannon-balling into the ocean. They could hear the two aces bickering in the water below, it made Takao and Akashi chuckle.

"So how come you wanted to do it hm?" Takao asked the other. "You don't strike me as a reckless person."

Akashi gave him a smile. "I've lived a sheltered life, I want to be reckless sometimes." With that, he inhaled deeply as took a run up, his jump was more modest in comparison to Aomine's but it was safe enough for Himuro's liking.

"Could you do a back flip off the cliff?" Takao asked Himuro as they watched the heir surface with a laugh, letting Aomine playfully splash him.

"In theory yes, I wouldn't recommend it." The second year replied, looking to the other two first years. "So, who's next?"

Hinata had relaxed a little but shook his head. Kageyama sighed heavily and volunteered, telling Hinata that he better jump after him as he was the one who originally asked to do it. It was daunting, the idea of throwing himself off a cliff into the ocean, he had only just learnt to swim properly a few days previously. He was pretty sure Suga was worried but as the third year hadn't come with them, it was obvious he had some faith in the aces to keep him alive.

With another sigh, he sprinted and jumped. He wondered if this feeling of weightlessness was similar to the one Hinata felt when he did their quick attack. As quickly as his feet had left the ground, he was in the water. The sudden chill was a shock to his system and he momentarily forgot how to swim. The panicked thought process his mind whirled through yielded little help as bubbles spilled from his mouth, his lungs hurt and he didn't know which way was up. He could hear someone shouting before a hand wrapping around his wrist tugged him both from underwater, and his panic.

"Bakageyama!" Hinata spluttered, wiping Kageyama's fringe from his eyes as they bobbed in the waves. Kagami had swam over and placed a hand on Kageyama's shoulder, trying to figure out if the setter was okay.

"What?" Kageyama snapped, figuring that Hinata must've jumped pretty soon after he did to be already in the water.

"You forgot everything I taught you about swimming didn't you?"

"Maybe? I dunno!"

"Sheesh, you scared me! I thought you were drowning!" Hinata continued yelling despite the fact that he was holding Kageyama by the wrist.

"Well I'm not anymore." Kageyama murmured. "...thanks for--"

Lips on his cut out his response, Aomine wolf-whistled just to add more embarrassment to the situation. Hinata pulled away and wrinkled his nose.

"Your mouth tastes of salt."

"Don't test me..." Kageyama grunted, wrapping his arms around Hinata as he focused on staying afloat, not wanting to admit that he had been scared until he felt the other's hand on him.

Takao and Himuro had been deep in discussion and seemed to come to an agreement about something. Takao stood on the edge of the cliff with his back facing the ocean, Himuro holding onto his hands as he balanced himself on the balls of his feet. After a nod, Himuro let go and stood back, Takao took a second to breathe before springing up, executing a back flip before he hit the water with a startled yelp.

He surfaced with a grin and demanded to do it again.

They had a few more goes each, Aomine and Kagami both trying to jump further than the other each time. Takao got more and more confident with his back flips, Akashi was still modest with his leaps but that didn't mean he wasn't having just as much fun. Hinata tried to get Takao to teach him how to back flip but the point guard refused to do so in such an unpredictable place, so he settled for just trying to jump as high as he could. Kageyama had done more than enough, still a little shaken and achy from his near-drowning experience.

"If it's any consolation," Himuro remarked as Aomine narrowly avoided hitting the water in a starfish formation. "both me and Taiga have nearly drowned a few times doing this."

"I guess." The other replied.

"It was kind of sweet seeing Hinata suddenly forget all about his nerves because you were in trouble. He tore off the end of the cliff and basically dived into the water like a dolphin. Idiot could've broken his neck though if it had gone wrong."

"Sounds about right..." Kageyama chuckled. "He is a bit of an idiot...but he's my idiot."

 

* * *

 

They decided not to tell the others about Kageyama's near death experience. They did tell everyone about Takao's impressive backflips though and that got a few scoffs from Kasamatsu about being 'unruly and reckless', not that they really paid attention to it. In their absence, the others had started roasting food over the fire, mainly sweet snacks but there were a few sausages and pieces of pork mixed in too. The sun had nearly fully set, leaving the sky with red, pink and orange streaks and Kuroko was making no attempt to hide how he was shooting short films in the firelight.

"So, anyone got any ghost stories?" Takao asked, it was getting dark, they were alone on the beach, it was the perfect time to tell some spooky stories.

"Oh god." Kagami sighed.

"Please no..." Daichi added.

Kuroo grinned. "Kenma has some."

"Kuro no." Kenma objected.

"Please Kenma-senpai!" Lev pleaded.

"No."

"Kenmaaaaa." Bokuto chimed, reaching over and ruffling the other's hair.

"I don't get it..." Furihata murmured.

Yaku sighed. "Well when we had a group study session a few weeks back, this dipshit--" gesturing to Kuroo, "--decided to have a ghost story marathon and Kenma managed to scare the entire team half to death."

"It's the _way_ he tells them." Lev added with a nod.

"Please Kenma?" Kuroo hummed, ducking his head to playfully head-butt the other. "Just one or two?"

The setter huffed, glancing at Kuroo with a stoic expression. "...fine. Just one."

Everyone seemed to be more attentive as Kenma pocketed his games console and sat up straight. The campfire flames danced in front of him, engulfing each piece of wood that Asahi and Daichi would add to the pile, pieces of meat sizzled slightly as flames licked at them, charring the edges bit by bit. He was quiet for a while, thinking up a story to tell the group that would satisfy their curiosity.

"It's not a ghost story per say." He spoke quietly, his tone low as his gaze fixed on the fire. "But more of a story of a curse."

No-one said anything, the crackling of wood and sounds of the waves lapping at the beach filled the silence. Kenma allowed himself to smile slightly as he blinked slowly and got himself into character to tell the story. This was what Lev meant by how he told the story, he didn't like the whole 'I heard this from a friend' bullshit, he liked telling the story from a first person point of view. That always made it scarier.

"My high school was pretty normal, though on the small side. Due to an influx in the number of students, they had to build some new classrooms, fairly standard practice of course. Well three out of the four were completed with no problem, A, B and C. Classroom D however, was not. Unexplained injuries and death plagued the construction crew, we all thought that it would be abandoned because of them but alas, somehow the room was completed. But it didn't stop there. It got worse."

He glanced around the group, he had their attention for sure. Some looked relatively calm but others looked uneasy, clinging onto each other for some sense of comfort.

"One by one, every teacher that taught in classroom D was hospitalized, some died, others simply never came back to school. Every year when new students were assigned to the classroom, one of them would die before that year was up, without fail. The coincidences were too plentiful to ignore, people started getting superstitious, they started calling it 'the devil's classroom'." He continued, returning his gaze to the embers as he spoke slowly and quietly, deliberately so to make everyone listen closely, to lean a little closer to him.

 "When the new year started and the classrooms were swapped around between classes, I joined one of my classmates in checking the board to see which room we had been assigned to. His trembling finger pointed to the room name, simply put as D on the board but we both knew what that meant. I tried to tell him that was all just superstition, that we weren't cursed, that we'd both be fine."

He paused, letting the silence settle.

"That was the last time I saw him. He got ran over by a truck that afternoon. When I was told, I couldn't help but think that he had been right to be suspicious of the room. As time passed, we all forgot about him and things returned to normal. However..."

He could sense the building suspension between some of the others, even Kuroo seemed a little on edge.

"Three days ago I was returning home from school, I turned the corner of one of the main roads and saw my classmate, the one who died. I called out to him, rather than stopping to talk he started running. I chased him, I chased him as he ran towards a busy intersection. A voice from behind me yelled to watch out but to no avail. The screeching of brakes echoes through my mind even now."

Another pause as he swallowed, licking his dry lips from talking so much. "I see them, all the teachers that died because of this curse. They still teach in this classroom, I glance behind me and see my classmate listening to the lesson. Another glance around and I see the construction workers that died. I also see a cemetery in the room. Today I saw my desk was covered in flowers and tributes...oh, did I forget to tell you? My classmate, well he wasn't my classmate really. He was in that classroom the year before me, he died before that year. This year's victim of the devil's classroom...was me."

The silence settled once more, Kenma blinked a few times and looked expectantly at Kuroo who seemed lost in thought. Once everyone realised it was over, there were a few murmurs of how 'it wasn't scary, just creepy' which Kenma took no offense at, he wasn't really in the mood to scare everyone stupid.

Murasakibara was the first to state he wanted to eat, the meat that had been cooking was carefully picked off the skewers and shared with those who wanted it. With the distraction of food, most forgot about the creepy tale, though some were still feeling uneasy.

"Was it a true story?" Hinata asked, getting a somewhat confused expression from Kenma.

"Huh? No, well. There are a lot of stories like that floating around forums Shoyo." Kenma replied with a shrug, accepting a piece of food from Kuroo. "I just read them sometimes for fun, that one actually came from a game I played once."

"So it wasn't real?" Hinata clarified, getting a small chuckle from Takao who had been listening in.

"No, it wasn't real." Kenma assured him. "Fictional."

With a sigh, Hinata fell back against Kageyama. Everyone happily ate as the sky darkened, leaving only the firelight casting orange glows on their faces. It was a relaxed atmosphere, no-one bickered much beyond playful teasing, some had fallen into a doze whilst others regaled everyone with tales from middle school and early high school years. Kisses were snuck between quiet couples, tender touches went unnoticed in the dimness and no-one was in a rush to put the fire out.

"Y'know what?" Kuroo sighed loudly, halting all conversation and directing attention to himself. "This has been fun guys, we should do it again sometime."

"I hear that." Bokuto nodded, careful not to be too loud as Akaashi was asleep and using his shoulder as a pillow.

"Save it for tomorrow." Daichi snorted. "Still got a few hours yet."

"You all are leaving first thing aren't you?" Yaku asked Suga, who nodded slowly.

"We'll be leaving at midday." Akashi stated. "Well, those who have to travel a long way at least."

"Traveling is only fun with snacks..." Murasakibara hummed, getting a laugh out of Himuro.

"But still, it has been fun." Ennoshita added. "Pretty sure we're not gonna forget any of it anytime soon."

"Not with Tetsu's habit of filming everything." Aomine sighed.

There was a pause.

"Wait he did what?"

Kuroko smiled slightly, exchanging a glance with Kenma. Kuroo noticed the exchange and got a sick feeling in his stomach.

"Let's just say, myself and Kozume-senpai have some pictures to show you all tomorrow." Kuroko replied. "I think you'll find them entertaining."

Kagami laughed, he was far too used to Kuroko embarrassing him with photos, there was no way he'd be the main victim anyway, not with all the lunacy that the others had been generating. Or at least, that's what he thought.


	16. Caught on Camera

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Bokuto aren't you part owl?! Try hooting at it!"
> 
> "It's a seagull dumbass! Unless you're a translator, that'll do fuck all."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the song that pretty much inspired this entire fic in a way was ['Love your friends, die laughing' by Man Overboard](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyBn8N0ShUg). It pretty much inspired the entire idea of a group of friends just hanging out and not giving a shit about their responsibilities.

Chapter Sixteen

Caught on Camera

_When you put your arms around me the whole worlds alright._  
_And a days worth of bitching goes down the drain_  
_When you lay in my bed and pick my brain._  
_Shut up! Shut up! It's my turn to talk._  
_Don't try and run before you learn to walk_.  
_Because a days worth of bitching goes down the drain_  
_When you lay in my bed and pick my brain._

* * *

 

As the night drew in and the fire died down, they started heading back to the school in small groups. The last to get ready to leave the beach were Aomine, Kagami, Sakurai and Kuroko. With everyone else intrigued at just what Kuroko and Kenma had managed to catch on camera, the two aces wanted to see if they could get some more hints out of the other.

"Aomine-kun, how many times did people get drunk in the past week?" Kuroko asked with a small smile as they make sure the fire was definitely out before leaving.

"...three?" Aomine replied, glancing at Sakurai for clarification. "Yeah three."

"And neither myself or Kozume-senpai drank, leaving us both sober."

"So?" Kagami butted in. "Is it like Kiyoshi's birthday where you--" He stopped himself. "Oh you haven't."

Sakurai looked confused as he leaned against Aomine's arm. "Haven't what?"

"You assume that I just sat back and watched everyone get drunk. It's not that amusing Kagami-kun." Kuroko had a mischievous look in his eyes. "Documenting it however, is very entertaining. Also this prank war has been caught on camera, from the first one onwards."

"First?" Aomine narrowed his eyes. "Wait you know who drew whiskers on Ryou?"

"I don't, but there are pictures." Kuroko shrugged. "That’s what I meant by myself _and_ Kozume-senpai having pictures."

Kagami chuckled, kicking sand on the final few embers and declaring it safe to leave. "You haven't gotten Kuroo back though Aomine."

"Fucking asshole, how the hell do I top him kidnapping someone?" Aomine gestured wildly to the near empty beach, the only other living things on the sand were seagulls. The ace noted how they seemed rather docile, just sat roosting on the sand just far enough up that the tide wouldn't disturb them. It gave him an idea. "Oi, Kagami, help me out with something."

 

* * *

 

 

When the door to the Nekoma room opened, Kenma glanced up from his games console. Everyone else was asleep so he was a little concerned, Kuroko gestured for him to get up and come outside the room, the setter was reluctant but sensed that something bad was about to happen if he didn't comply. Once in the hallway, he could hear the not-too-distant bickering of the aces but also some peculiar squawks.

"What have they done?" he asked Kuroko, Sakurai looked nervous but tried to hide his laughter.

"They kidnapped a bird." Kuroko said, in an oh so calm way. "They're gonna release it into your room."

"This is their revenge huh," Kenma smiled slightly. "I'm sure Kuro will be so happy. But your old teammates are in there, surely they don't want to piss them off."

Kuroko shrugged. "Collateral damage."

Kenma chuckled, shoving his hands in the pockets of his jacket. "Okay, go for it."

Sakurai nodded, making his way down to wherever Aomine and Kagami were wrestling with the bird they'd kidnapped. Kenma took out his phone and began selecting the camera app as the squawking got louder. The seagull was not happy in the slightest about being stolen from his or her beach, Kagami had his fingers holding the beak shut to prevent it making as much noise, Aomine had hold of it in such a way that its wings couldn't take either of them out.

"Okay, you ready?" Aomine was trying not to laugh or let go of the very pissed off bird. "We throw it in there and then close the door enough so it can't get out."

Kagami nodded, moving with the ace as Kuroko opened the door. "Three..."

"Two." Aomine whispered.

"One."

They released the bird into the room, shutting the door enough to only leave a small gap for them to watch the chaos through. The bird screeched almost as soon as it was released, sending Aomine and Kagami into howls of laughter, especially when the startled noises of their victims waking up followed. The bird wasn't happy about being in a closed room, continuously trying to fly out of either the window or the door and screeching whenever it failed.

Kasamatsu and Akashi exchanged a glance, noting Aomine's empty futon and knowing exactly who was behind this lunacy. Himuro huffed as he stood up, Murasakibara just glared at the bird and buried his head in his pillows. Kuroo and Bokuto were wide awake and already trying to capture the bird, Akaashi and the rest of Nekoma just resigned themselves to watching the two captains falling over each other as they chased the bird around the room.

"The hell is going on?" Daichi's voice spooked Kagami, the Karasuno captain had been checking on his team before going to bed and was now witnessing his two rivals making idiots of themselves.

"Uh, well--" Kagami started to explain, Suga came out of the room equally as concerned but took one look inside the room and started laughing.

"Please tell me you're recording this Kenma." He remarked.

"Of course." Kenma replied.

Bokuto had cornered the bird, stretching his arms out either side of him as if he was mimicking the creature, or maybe trying to intimidate it. He grinned as he took a step towards it and got an ear-piercing shriek in response.

"You're _mine_ \--" He stated as he leapt forward and tried to grab it, he succeeded in face-planting the floor and the bird taking flight again. Kuroo burst into a fit of laughter, turning into a cry of panic as the gull hit him in the face with a wing as it flew past and settled in the opposite corner of the room.

"Bokuto aren't you part owl?!" Kuroo called as the other captain got off the floor, a red mark in the centre of his forehead. "Try hooting at it!"

"It's a seagull dumbass! Unless you're a translator, that'll do fuck all."

Akaashi sighed heavily, exchanging a glance with Yaku as Lev decided _he_ was going to capture this bird. After all, he was the most cat-like.

"Here birdie~" He cooed as he crawled towards it, taking the cat impression a little too seriously. The bird scuttled around the empty futon, eying him warily as he smirked.

"Lev, get the fuck off the floor--" Yaku complained, already sensing this was going to end _horribly_.

The first year continued stalking the bird, all while Kuroo and Bokuto were arguing about how to translate owl hoots to bird squawks. Without warning - or thought - Lev pounced, missing the bird entirely and rugby tackling Himuro instead. The second year let out a groan of pain as he sat up and rubbed the back of his head, the sound of the impact was enough to rouse Murasakibara from his attempted slumber. He saw Lev pinning Himuro the ground and saw red; getting up and picking Lev up by the front of his shirt, glaring as the first year - instead of being legitimately terrified for his life - made a comment about how this was the first time someone had been tall enough to pick him up off the ground.

The two aces at the door were beyond saving, both in a fit of laughter as Akashi got up and started trying to calm the giant down and convince him that _'no Lev was not trying to hit on Himuro, just hitting him to the ground instead'_. The seagull was getting more and more agitated as Kuroo started chasing it around again, pleading for Akaashi to get up and help, the setter declined. Bokuto attempted to help again by also chasing it but that just made the bird scuttle faster.

"How the fuck did you catch a bird?" Yaku sighed, glaring half-heartedly at the door where Aomine and Kagami were dying from laughter.

"They snuck up on it." Kuroko replied.

"Well that's fucking fantastic."

"Can we just let it loose in the school--" Kuroo asked, tripping and attempting to catch the bird but of course failed.

"No!" Yaku snapped. "You brought this on yourself anyway."

"I didn't even start the freaking prank war!"

Kenma concealed his laughter, he knew exactly who had started it but he was enjoying this too much to divert the attention elsewhere. The noise had attracted a few more onlookers to the door, including Momoi and Riko. It only took them two moments to establish that chasing the bird was never going to work. Riko sighed heavily and pushed her way into the room, telling the two exhausted captains to quit making things worse.

"You're all imbeciles." She sighed, taking advantage of the unused futon and stripping the top sheet off of it. "Kasa get over here."

The Kaijo captain grunted, sensing that Riko wouldn't let him say no. He accepted the sheet from Riko and letting her explain to _slowly_ drive the bird into the corner of the room. He did as she asked, ignoring the laughter from the doorway as he calmly approached the highly agitated bird and after a few failed attempts, managed to get it into the corner of the room.

"Stay still." She told him, eying the seagull as she strayed to the edge of the sheet. When the bird's gaze shifted from her she moved quickly and seized it by the feet. It let out a loud screech as it suddenly found itself upside-down, flapping its wings frantically until the captain dropped the sheet and caught hold of it in a similar fashion to how Aomine had been holding it in the first place.

With the bird captured, everyone let out a sigh of relief. Momoi glared at Aomine as he was identified as the main culprit, the seagull was handed back to him and he was told sternly to take it back to the beach _immediately_.

Kenma smirked as he ended the recording, pocketing his phone quickly before re-entering the room and letting Kuroo complain about how unfair this entire prank was. Akaashi had been more than entertained by the two captain's running around like idiots but now he had to deal with the bruise forming on Bokuto's forehead. The third year quickly devolved into a small child as he pined for his lover's attention, the setter complied, gently pressing a kiss to the mark and letting him snuggle up to him underneath the blankets of the futon.

"Well, now that _that's_ over...I want to sleep." Kasamatsu sighed. "Thanks idiots."

Kagami laughed, shrugging off the captain's comment. "Sleep tight Kasa."

"Shut the hell up brat."

 

* * *

 

 

They gathered in Karasuno's room the next morning, breakfast was prepared and bought up to the room ahead of Kuroko and Kenma showing off all the embarrassing photos from the week's chaos. There was a certain amount of unease at just how much they had caught on camera between them, though they were assured the photos would stay between them and definitely not make it onto the internet or yearbooks.

The first few pictures where staged, where people knew they were being taken and therefore posed. From then on, the candid photos began. They started on the day everyone went swimming, featuring a lot of diving shots of the miracles and volleyball captain's alike, Kageyama's swimming lessons - which prompted the setter to bury his embarrassed face in Hinata's shoulder as Kuroo laughed.

"Dunno why you're laughing Kuro." Kenma remarked, flipping to the next photo which was of Kuroo in mid-air as he fell into the pool. Everyone erupted into laughter at the expression the captain had on his face.

There were a few general photos of everyone having fun, but the setting abruptly changed from the swimming pool to the small classroom that the captain's had chosen for their small drinking event. Daichi felt the colour drain from his face as the first few images were tame, but then the video popped up.

"Oh god." Aomine laughed. "Tetsu you bas--"

Kuroo's recorded voice came out of the laptop speakers explaining the concept of a jager-bomb. The next few moments of footage were everyone's disgusted reactions to the mixture, including the captain's protest at stopping early and his intentions of getting drunk in the first place.

 _"Great! That was the plan anyway. We were getting pretty boy there drunk and he's gone too."_ The camera was squarely fixed on Akashi's somewhat tipsy self as Kuroo pointed at him. Whoever had the camera laughed as Aomine clarified that Kuroo did in fact call Akashi pretty.

Akashi felt his face heat up, especially when the images continued to when Kuroo - a very _drunk_ Kuroo - hugged him. He got a few amused looks from Kise and Takao as a result.

The pictures came back, the great pillow mystery was caught as it was solved, before a drastic time skip occurred until the basketball match. They were just typical shots of the game in motion, including Kise and Lev going for the tip-off and prompting Aomine to once again point out how foolish it was for the blond to assume he'd come out on top. More pictures showed the more laid back occasions; relaxing in the sunshine, chatting between the different teams, the sushi platter being devoured.

And then the prank war pictures.

It had always been assumed that Kuroo was the one who started it - despite his protests - but with the picture as solid proof, the captain's name was cleared once and for all.

"Satsuki?!" Aomine blurted out. "What? Why? How?"

Momoi giggled, gesturing to the couple. "My plan worked so why are you complaining?"

Sakurai's cheeks reddened. "Y-You...you did it so that we'd..."

"I knew Dai-chan had a thing for you, he wasn't going to do anything without a prompt. So I thought you'd confide in him about it if he was the one to find you in the restroom." She explained. "I didn't expect you to turn it into a prank war."

Kuroo was slightly irritated but laughed. "You mean to tell me that I was blamed for some weird matchmaking scheme?!"

The argument was defused by the pictures from the water-fight coming up, they were all from the upper floors which definitely pointed to Kenma and Kuroko taking them. There was a lot of reminiscing as they flicked through the photos, a few half-hearted insults being thrown back and forth until once again the setting changed; the first picture was of the alcohol. And everyone knew this was the _real_ start of the embarrassment.

"What was that came called again?" Takao asked Himuro as yet another video played; showing the shot glasses in a circle.

"Shot roulette." Himuro replied.

"We have to play it again sometime." Aomine chuckled, looking to Sakurai. "You think you can out-drink our captain?"

"D-Daiki that's a terrible idea." He laughed. "I don't want to think about the captain being drunk."

The pillow fight was caught on camera, but where Kenma's photos kept within Karasuno's room and witnessed the shaving foam being introduced, Kuroko's followed Aomine as he collected ice from the kitchen and indeed placed it in Kuroo's futon. Much to the annoyance of the captain.

"See I knew it was you!" He loudly declared.

"I never denied it!" Aomine shouted back.

From there the pizza party photos came into view. Tanaka laughed as the pizza pie's creation was documented and then the video of him eating the abomination caught his declaration of the bet he and Ennoshita agreed on. The other second year was not as enthusiastic about it, blushing and refusing to even look his senpai's in the eye as Kuroo's voice came through the speakers again;

 _"Our father in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come--"_  
  
_"Wait are you performing an exorcism on the pizza?"_ Bokuto's loud voice interrupted, making everyone in the room laugh.

_"No I'm giving him his late rites."_

That was one moment that would come up in any retelling of the training camp fiasco. The next moment to be caught was the 'seven minutes in heaven' chaos that Momoi put everyone through. Thankfully the cameras didn't catch any of the actual closet shenanigans but they did get Kagami allowing Riko to apply bright pink lipstick on his face as war paint _and_ Noya drinking a shot of soy sauce and nearly dying. It also caught Akashi flirting with Furihata for a dare and Himuro admitting he spiked everyone's drinks.

It was a train-wreck basically and everyone was either laughing or dying of embarrassment.

There weren't any photos of the hangovers, or the search for any missing people, no the next thing either camera caught was Kuroo stealing Aomine's shampoo and Bokuto spooning mayonnaise into the bottle. Then it was the duct taped note being left on Aomine's pillow. There were no photos of Sakurai's 'kidnapping' and that was for a good reason.

"I wasn't kidnapped." He explained when asked. "Akaashi asked me to help him with something and then he told me everything."

"So you...they...wait _what_?!"

"We completely fooled you Aomine." Kuroo smirked, narrowly avoiding getting hit with a flying pillow. "The ultimate prank is doing nothing and making you think we did something."

 _"This asshole stole--"_  
  
_"Kidnapped."_  
  
_"--Sakurai."_

Momoi and Kise burst into laughter, Aomine had really been fooled into thinking his lover was kidnapped, when actually he had just gone along with it without realising. He was quiet for a few moments before chuckling.

"You got me I guess..."

The beach day photos were next, the beach volleyball, the swimming, sandcastle building and the wet t shirt contest. This had been the part Kagami was dreading, knowing Kuroko and Kenma filmed it all. He somewhat regretted letting Aomine talk him into doing the provocative dance when he saw himself on the screen. There were laughs all around from everyone, a few teasing wolf-whistles too.

"So we're gonna show Seirin this." Riko remarked.

"No!" Kagami argued.

"Bad luck Bakagami." Aomine teased.

With the rest of them getting squally embarrassed by the wet shirt contest photos, things moved along to the cliff jumping video that Takao had shot and then given over to Kuroko, featuring Kageyama nearly drowning and once Himuro had been given the phone, Takao's backflips into the water.

"Is that it then?"

"No." Kenma replied, plugging his phone into the laptop. "This was last night."

It was now being dubbed 'the seagull incident' and would go down in the school's history as the time the Nekoma volleyball captain got pranked. Karasuno all took great joy in laughing at the carnage created by one bird, Bokuto and Kuroo laughed too but more at the sleepy bickering they took part in and Lev nearly dying at the hands of Murasakibara. It finished with Kasamatsu handing Aomine the bird and the ace being told to put it back where he found it.

"And that's all we have." Kuroko declared.

"Well that was a wild ride..." Takao sighed.

"We should probably get packing though." Suga sighed. "We gotta leave in a few hours."

"I don't wanna leave!" Hinata protested.

"Me neither!" Kise pouted, gaining a sigh from Kasamatsu and a laugh from everyone else.

"I want you all out of my house though!" Yaku protested half-heartedly, which prompted ever more laughter.

"Okay, get packing. We'll sort out some kind of lunch." Kuroo told them. "No more pranks though."

"Only if you shake on it." Aomine raised an eyebrow.

Kuroo sighed dramatically but nodded, getting up and extending his hand. The ace took it and they shook on the ceasefire.

 

* * *

 

With everyone packed and ready to leave, they all sat down in the cafeteria and ate together one last time, there were no fights, just limited bickering, some reminiscing and some teasing. All in all everyone had survived the week, new friendships had been made, unlikely couples had also come about. No-one really understood _how_ Akaashi was dating both Kuroo and Bokuto but no-one questioned it, likewise did no-one ask if Midorima and Takao were actually dating or not as no-one had seen them do anything since the night they were drunk.

Phone numbers and social media contacts were exchanged between the groups, promises of vacation visits and meet ups were made, rematches of both volleyball and basketball alike were declared, even an invitation to the miracles to drop by at the training camp next year that would be hosted at a different school was thrown in at the last moment.

Karasuno were the first to leave, the minibus being loaded up with luggage by Ukai and Asahi whilst the final few goodbyes took place. Hinata suddenly felt very emotional.

"Wait!" He called just before they started getting on the bus. "C-Can we all get a group photo or something?"

"Eh?" Kuroo asked, the miracles were just about to leave too. "Sure, I guess we can get some photos in, what do you say Kenma?"

The setter wasn't about to disagree, sure enough a few minutes were spent with each of the teams getting group pictures with each other, the captains were persuaded to get in on the act too with a photo just for them. Kenma promised to send everyone copies one way or another, adding he wasn't going to pay for postage so it would be done electronically.

As they finally got settled on the bus and began the trip back to Miyagi, Daichi sighed heavily, getting a slight chuckle from Suga as the setter rested his head on the other's shoulder.

"I'm getting too old for this." Daichi murmured.

"Yeah, you're definitely _dadchi_." Suga remarked.

"Then that makes you the mom."

"Sugamom."

They both chuckled slightly. The silence in the bus told them their kouhai were all asleep, no surprise really with all the events. Regardless, once they were back they'd have to train again. Even if they were now friends with both Nekoma and Fukurodani, they had to be ready to face them on the court and win whatever the stakes. The friendships forged during the training camp and the vacation afterwards would prove valuable though, reminding them that no matter the outcome of their matches, there are always people around to pick them up when they are feeling down. Whilst most of the bonds may be more platonic than others, it didn't mean they didn't love their friends any less.

 

* * *

_I feel so stupid because I came here without anything  
But I'm finally at ease._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I just wanna say thankyou so much to everyone who's read, kudos'd and/or commented. Y'all make this writing thing much more enjoyable than it already is so I'm forever in your debt!~
> 
> -Bryn


End file.
